Styles of Sunglasses: What’s Big This Summer?

It’s coming. Birds chirping, snow melting, it’s spring! Although UV rays don’t go away for the winter and you’ve had your precious eyes protected by your other sunglasses for the chillier months, you can’t stop that urge to shop for more shades before 2017 really heats up. So, without further ado, let’s see what this year has in store for biggest trends in sunglasses. But one more thing before we dig in: remember to look for the CE certified 100% UV protection.

Paint it Black

This year, a good portion of the runway’s shades created some Matrix-inspired looks featuring all black, dark tint sunglasses. If you’re not one for putting something too flashy on your face, then this understated look is for you. It matches everything, works year-round and gives you a too-cool-for-it-all vibe. (Image courtesy of channel.com).

Channel

 

Go BIG or go Home

 So, all black isn’t your thing. That’s fine, because large, thick, obviously plastic frames in every colour of the rainbow, and not without the option of funky prints, are a big statement this year. A lot of these styles have a fun cat-eye effect, for that feminine flare, and who doesn’t love bright funky statement shades? While it’s a popular style among designer sunglasses, there are many similar yet effective options at a cheaper price and they’re not hard to find.  (Image courtesy of Gucci).

Gucci
 

Mirror, mirror….

This is a fun one. Rainbow reflective tints, similar to that colourful oil slick effect, are all the rage. This festival inspired look is popular in aviator styles, sharp trapezoidal styles, and even wayfarer looks for more classical tastes. Not only is this a Coachella ready fashion statement, but it’s got that Beyoncé stamp of approval! (Image courtesy of Amevie).

Amevie Paris
 

Get wired!

Double wired sunglasses with that funky second bar above the bridge (called a browbar) have a rockstar quality that’s filled with vintage appeal. This style is most commonly used on aviators, from classic styles (a la Top Gun), to clever aviator inspired shapes that have taken on some more flare for the ladies. It’s a really fun way to show some uniqueness and creativity in how you express yourself through accessories.

Amevie – trendy sun care company

Amevie sure sounds like a pretty name, but it packs a lot more meaning than just sounding nice! Amevie comes about from the latin word “amehvi”, meaning “Love Life”. Simply loving life? Sign us up! Amevie serves as a triple whammy in internet resources, as a super fun informative blog offering health tips regarding the sun and UV rays, without getting too medical on us, offering lots of fun inspiration and juicy tips about fashion, and safe fun in the sun. Not only is Amevie a pretty rich source of helpful info, but will very soon also serve as a platform for the company’s own brand of health-conscious sunglasses and sunscreens, which successfully balance health, beauty, and fashion, without sacrificing any of those three essentials.

Amevie is a super handy site to keep saved in your browser bookmarks; their articles are jam-packed with answers to those head-scratching questions about our health and how the sun’s rays work, while being extra accessible, intuitive and comprehensive. Reading the full details about these subjects from the more biology-heavy medical sources is a total bore, feels like school, and sometimes leaves us more confused than before. Browsing through some of their article titles, I noticed the added bonus of tips for travel too. These posts are full of little tricks and hacks to make traveling and keeping your skin, eyes etc. safe during your time abroad. So useful, right?!

Amevie doesn’t pull punches when it comes to busting industry myths about sunscreens and sunglasses, products that are supposed to protect us, but often don’t, despite having pretty demanding price tags. After all, who doesn’t want the knowledge toolkit to know which sunscreen, on a shelf stocked with tons of different brands that are all trying hard to sell, works best and isn’t feeding our skin cells unfriendly chemicals. If you don’t believe us, or are just feeling curious, see for yourself, and if you like what you see, share with your friends and family!


This article was written by Maurice Hriech, a Creative Industries graduate (almost) at Ryerson University with a love for city-living, summer, and organic skin care that keeps his health at the forefront. Hobbies include indoor gardening, film photography, and of course, shopping.

Step into Spring: 2015 Footwear trends

Spring has sprung and with it comes a set of trends specifically those in footwear. If you haven’t had the chance to check them out or just need a little refresher I am here to help. Check out my rundown & some options on how you can make them your own. Let’s get started.

Flats

Now flats aren’t new to fashion, but even so they manage to reinvent themselves in order to make a returning appearance each season.

Runway

Bottega Veneta Spring 2015

Bottega Veneta Spring 2015

Bottega Veneta Spring 2015

Real way
BP.

BP. Cutout Flat (Women)

BP. Cutout Flat (Women)

The Cutout Flat (Women) Avaliable in Gold and Pewter Glitter for $49.95 at Nordstorm

Futuristic Shoes

This particular trend is definitely for those fashionistas who don’t shy away from being the center of attention.

Runway

Alexander Wang Spring 2015

Alexander Wang Spring 2015

Real Way

Silver and Black Futuristic Platform Knee High Womens Boots

Silver and Black Futuristic Platform Knee High Womens Boots

Dear to wear these? Silver and Black Futuristic Platform Knee High Womens Boots for $134.15 from Uturn Utopia.

 

Gladiator

Depending on how you feel you might be glad the Gladiator trend is back yet again. 

Runway

Rodarte

Real way

Wild Rose Tasseled Super Strappy Caged Gladiator Heels

Wild Rose Tasseled Super Strappy Caged Gladiator Heels

 Wild Rose Tasseled Super Strappy Caged Gladiator Heels for  $52.99 original, but now on sale for  $21.20 at Charlotte Russe

Mules

In a case of Déjà vu for me Mules are back again for another season. However, this time they have been upgraded from the version we remembered. 

Runway

Donna Karan Spring 2015(mules)

Donna Karan Spring 2015 Image courtesy of Harper’s Bazaar

Real Way

Pointed Toe Two Piece Runway Mule

Pointed Toe Two Piece Runway Mule

 The Pointed Toe Two Piece Runway Mule can be found at $79.90 on Express

Platforms

For some when they hear platforms they think 70s Disco. However, platforms have come a long way.  Below are the stylish runway and real way version for you to check out.

Runway

Saint Laurent (platform)

Real Way

Daisy Street Silver Holographic Mollie Shoes 1(platform) collage

 

Daisy Street Silver Holographic Mollie Shoes  available for $75.78 on Asos.

These are just  some of the footwear trends you can expect to see this spring.  Hopefully you can make a few of them your own this season!

This article was written by our guest blogger Tamarah Brown. You can follow her on Tumblr and Twitter.

 

Valentine’s Day Outfits

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, women  are last minute shopping for the perfect outfit. Men don’t have the slightest clue how much effort is put in an entire outfit. It’s not just about the dress. Women also pull together matching shoes, jewellery, accessories, make-up and hair style.

There are also so many factors that influence an outfit. So before you go all out and shop for yet another outfit consider this:

How will the weather be like? It might be worth investing in a nice pink/red coat or scarves and gloves to pull together a Valentine’s day outfit.

Try to find out out where you will be dining. It could be a very expensive restaurant, or a cute and hip neighberhood local. Even if it’s dinner at home prepared by him, look and feel your best!

Is this your first date? is it your first Valentine’s? Is this your one thousand three hundred and ninth date? So what? Don’t dress to impress, but dress up to reflect your personality: romantic, flirty, sexy, bold or shy, he will love you for you not for your clothes!

 

With that said, we put together two different outfits for your inspiration.

Valentine’s Day Outfit #1

This outfit’s center piece is the WishNow’ Poison dress. This dreamy above the knee dress is flirty, sexy and yet elegant. The sophisticated cocktail dress is available for $350, and you can have it custom made!   Fit for a fairy tale like evening, make sure you match it with Skinny Bag’s Fairy Tale Clutch available on their online store for $217 (they currently have a Valentine’s day promo for 15% off).

Valentine's day outfit

 

 

 Valentine’s Day Outfit #2

For our second outfit we opted for a more romantic and elegant ensemble from Alexandra Lin Designs. This white and pink skirt and top are perfect for those die-hard romantics, and we recommend a matching Skinny Bags Love Story CrossBody. We also found an amazing jewelery designer, which we are sure you’d love: Babette Shannan. This rubellite and pink diamonds ring is set in pink gold and has a unique vintage look.

Valentine's day outfit

 

We hope you like our Valentine’s day outfits, and as you can tell, we support emerging fashion and jewellery designers alike. We find their inspiring stories to be, well…romantic!

How to Mix Patterns and Prints

Polka dots, floral, tribal, stripes, cheetah, zebra, snakeskin; the list of stylish prints seems to go on infinitely. On the contrary, sometime styling them into a proper outfits can become a daunting task, even more so if you want to try to mix patterns. It’s not impossible but be warned that this can either make or break an outfit.

What to Remember:

1. Colour is probably the most important thing to consider when mixing busy patterns because if you can find two prints with the same colour palette, or the same background colour, there’s a great chance that the look can unify itself.

Mix Colour Patterns

Fausto Puglisi Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Colour Patterns

Emanuel Ungaro Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Colour Patterns

Fausto Puglisi Pre-Fall 2015

 

2. Belts are your best friend if you’ve tried the first step and see the potential but are unsure of whether the look really works. Try buckling a belt–of common colour between the two prints–on top of both layers, ensuring that the patterns show through, to really pull them together.

Mix Belt Patterns

Alexander McQueen Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Belt Patterns

Marni Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Belt Patterns

Matthew Williamson Pre-Fall 2015

What to Try:

1. Monochromatic- Try pulling together an outfit of two-toned patterns with two different pieces and you’ll be surprised at how chic it can turn out. You can also experiment with matching or complimenting textures like sheer, wool, etc. This trend should be taken advantage of more!

Mix Monochrome Patterns

Alberta Ferretti Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Monochrome Patterns

Emanuel Ungaro Pre-Fall 2015

 

 

2. Dots and Stripes- This may be a combination that really throws people off but when put together well, it can really finish off a great look. Again, just make sure that the two colour palettes of each print are similar. Also ensure that the palette is distributed well meaning, if you find that the look doesn’t work, try focusing the darks on the bottom half and the lights on the top half or vice versa.

Mix Dots Stripes Patterns

Fausto Puglisi Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Dots Stripes Patterns

Marni Pre-Fall 2015

3. Stripes on Stripes- This may be another risky one but what’s fashion without risk-taking? Try mixing the sizes and orientation of your prints, in this case, stripes. A large-striped top could look amazing with a tightly-striped bottom if a matching belt can pull the two together and vice versa.

Mix Stripes Patterns

Marni Pre-Fall 2015

Mix Stripes Patterns

Marco de Vincenzo Pre-Fall 2015

Mixing prints is definitely something that can be quite scary at first but once you get the hang of it, you’ll find yourself feeling much more comfortable in the clothes you wear. It’s all about accentuating a focal point, colour, or aspect in the pattern. Just make sure that your colours agree and remember the power of the belt!

What are some of your favourite prints to mix? Tweet them to us @LuevoFashion.

This article was written by our coop student extraordinaire, Samantha Chung Sang.

Say adieu to those darks and opt for bright this winter season!

Goodbye blacks!

Winter does not mean you have to fill your wardrobe with all blacks and dark browns. If you want to play a bit with color, then go ahead!

Here are a couple of tips that can help you get started!

Day 109D-Michelle

Add a bright item to your dark wardrobe!

There is quite a bit of chance your wardrobe is already filled with those blacks and dark navy blues and browns, do not throw them away! What you can do is that you can add a bright yellow colored coat to an all black outfit or bright pants to a black shirt and black coat outfit.

There is also an option of patterned pants or tights, as these are quite in this season.

Add brightly colored accessories!

You can also add a range of vividly colored accessories. For example, you can find cheap scarves in bright hues that will instantly brighten up any outfit they are worn with. You can add a bag, some shades and a high heeled boots, all in the same color and you are good to go!

This season, neon colors are very much in fashion, with almost every designer incorporating out these colors. So if you feel bold enough, you can try on neon yellow or blue and look fabulous!

 Enjoy the attention!

Of course you will stand out from the crowd of people who are wearing those dull clothes day in and day out! When people see you dressed in a beautifully colored wardrobe, who can resist that? Enjoy all the attention you get, ladies!

 

 

Author Bio: Melody Wilson is a freelance writer and has worked for a number of academic writing agencies previously. Currently, she is working for Instyle Jackets as a content writer for their fashion blog. Her passion is to write so she loves to write on new and a diverse range of topics. In her free time, she loves to read books and write short stories. Image courtesy of ClosetSpace Magazine.

2015 Handbags Color Trend

As an accessories designer I always keep up to date with the latest trends as  famous fellow designers such as Dior, Gucci and Versace take  the runway.

Colors are the easiest to pick out as trends,  and usually we see bright bold colours for Spring/Summer and darker more dull colors for Fall/Winter. But once in a while the industry likes to continue with the same color from the previous season. So let’s see what Dior, Prada, Fendi, Gucci, Versace, Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren and others are doing this season.

First, we saw a lot of solid white, black, and combination of the two.

Designer houses such as Jason Wu and Armani have also ventured out with snake and alligator prints for this season..

Another color trend that Marni, Fendi and many others preferred this season is bright colors such as yellow.

In conclusion, this season you will mostly see white, black and bright colors (especially yellow). Also, if you already have exotic leathers in your collection, you are in luck, this is the season to pull out the snake/alligator skin purse.

What is  your favorite color trend in handbags for this season?

This article was written by LA based accessories designer Franco Vernica. You can follow Franco on Twitter at @FrancoVernica. All images are courtesy of Fashion Wirepress.

 

New Year-New Designers

Here we are at the start of a new year. This is the time of year when people will attempt to keep their resolutions.  One resolution that always seems to appear is changing your look.  Now I am not going to focus on changing your whole appearance, but rather how to add new things to your wardrobe.  I narrowed it down to a few emerging designers that not only can help make this happen, but are also the ones to watch this year.

I visited several websites before I found a set of emerging designers that caught my attention on StartUp Fashion.    What sets them apart from all of the others are their products and overall brand that are truly unique.   It wasn’t only their unique style that drew me in, rather the influential message behind their brand.  You will definitely want to make sure to keep an eye on them this year.

The first emerging designer I want to highlight will help fashionistas who are looking for truly distinctive handbags, backpacks or wallets to add to their 2015 wardrobe.  Chiyome is the brand for you.  Since launching the brand in November 2011, Creative Director & CEO Anne Lynett Moss incorporates solid artistic roots into her designs courtesy of her maternal Japanese ancestry. The brand is also committed to source materials from minority-owned located preserve of leather work in NYC.  If you are looking for a minimalist,yet chic high-quality leather handbags, backpacks and etc. then you should check out Chiyome. You can find CHIYOME at their website, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest .

Chiyome2

The next emerging designer is perfect for those looking to stock up on beachwear and are concerned with animal protection at the same time.  Created in July 2013, Misha Mendicino Designs offers beautiful, yet effortless designs that will be perfect for your beach days in 2015.  Mendicino was also crowned the Designer of the Year at Phoenix Fashion Week 2014.   On the philanthropic side, they are dedicated to the protection of elephants.  Not only do they have a Signature Elephant Logo Print , but they also partnered with David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.  In addition, Misha Mendicino Designs donates 5% of all sales generated to secure a future for elephants.   To find out more about Misha Mendicino Designs check out their website.

Misha Mendicino Designs phoenix-design-week

If are looking for traditional sophistication with a touch of contemporary design to add your look in 2015, then Ryu Ryu is the emerging label you’ve been seeking.  Ryu Ryu consists of clean lines, a soft color palette, and is extremely luxurious when it comes to the designs.  The designs ranging from tops to their signature designs are sure to satisfy the taste of the sophisticated woman. One of my favorites from the line has to be the Strappy Racerback Dress  which can be dressed up or down.   Outside their designs Ryu Ryu also likes to give back.  A portion of their sales are used to feed children in North Korea.  To find more about Ryu Ryu  visit their website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.

RYU RYU Strappy Racerback Dress

I am confident that these emerging designers will help you add hot items to your attire this season for a whole new look. I have a feeling we will be hearing from each of these brands and designers in 2015, so keep an eye out for them!

This article was written by Tamarah. Follow her on Twitter at @TZB86

Are you looking for a new writing opportunity? Perhaps you have style tips that you would like to share with the world? We value new fashion trends and are always looking for talented guest bloggers. If you’re a blogger or writer, this is the place for you to get noticed. Can you see yourself as a part of our blogging team? Apply here!

Keeping Your Favorite Clothes From the Donation Bin

Saving a few dollars on upkeep of your clothing can mean the world of difference, and can help you get more bang for your buck, per se, than if you had otherwise treated your clothing less-than it should be treated.

Throwing your clothes in the washer and dryer without looking may be the biggest sin of keeping clothes longer. While this may seem like the easiest option, there are ways to keep them in better shape for longer. Here are some tips on how to keep your clothing fresh, and unblemished.

Image from ecosalon.com

Image from ecosalon.com

Wash with cold water

  • Instead of dry cleaning, try washing your clothes in cold water to keep them longer. Also, be sure to pay attention to the wash guidelines on the clothing’s tags.

Rack Dry

  • Instead of drying your clothing in the dryer, try rack/line drying your clothes for a better outcome. Heat can break down clothing fibers and dull colors.

Rotate

  • Rotating clothing is commonly understood among bra-owners that rotation is key. I was once told by a Nordstrom employee that I should always rotate my bras and also always should put them in lingerie bags. This goes for other clothing too, especially more delicate items like those with sequins and silk. Rotate, and wash in a lingerie bag to keep these items in prime condition.

Storage

  • Storing clothing in the right way can also exponentially increase your ability to keep your favorite pieces. Wood hangers can work miracles over plastic or wire hangers that can stretch out your clothing and leave you with unshapely, unrecognizable from first wear, items. Storage is especially important when it comes to pricey suits and dresses.

Avoid Dry Cleaning

  • Avoid dry cleaning when you can. The chemicals used to dry clean clothing can add to clothing deterioration over time.

Overall, the best way to keep your clothing longer is to, frankly, be sure the clothing you buy is of sustainable quality. This doesn’t mean you have to purchase the most expensive clothing, only that you should be well aware of what fabrics are sturdiest against wear and tear and which designers/stores sell those types of pieces.

This article was written by PR specialist, Kurie. You can follow her on Tumblr and Twitter @KurieFitz

Are you looking for a new writing opportunity? Perhaps you have style tips that you would like to share with the world? We value new fashion trends and are always looking for talented guest bloggers. If you’re a blogger or writer, this is the place for you to get noticed. Can you see yourself as a part of our blogging team? Apply here!

Pippa Middleton Style Outfit of the Day

For some classic and elegant fashion inspiration, where better to look than to the royal family and Pippa Middleton, sister of the Duchess of  Cambridge is such a style icon! Recently Pippa was spotted wearing this fashionable outfit that adds a great splash of color to a dreary winter day! We re-created Pippa’s stylish outfit of the day, read below where you can grab each item:

Pippa Middleton Style

Where to get Pippa Middleton Style:

 

Jacket

Style: Solid tone Collarless Woolen Cocoon Coat

Designer: Black Five

Price: $60.99

Get it here.

Scarf

Style: Stole

Designer: Crumpet

Price: $164.00

Get it here.

Pants

Style: Simona Zip Pocket Slim Cut Pants

Designer: Forever New

Price: $79.99

Get it here.

Purse:

Style: ‘Small Dillon’ Croc Embossed Leather Satchel

Designer: Michael Kors

Price: $332.83

Get it here.

Sunglasses:

Style: Marcie Oversized Sunglasses

Designer: Chloe

Price: $396.00

Get it here.

Boots:

Style: Marlyn Boots

Designer: DV by Dolce Vita

Price: $119.00

Get it here.

What do you think of this look? Love it or leave it? Comment below or tweet @luevofashion your thoughts!