DIY Spring trends

Remember that you don't have to buy all your trendy new clothes. You can make them too! A lot of the looks shown for spring - cut-offs, ripped jeans, slouchy tees... can be made from clothes you already have in your closet. Please do not go out and buy J Brand cut up jean shorts for $176.00. That's crazy! Cut off your own. I swear they will look the same, probs better. If you don't have a pair you want to cut, go to the thrift store. I made some from a pair of hollister jeans from like 5 years ago and for reals, they look just like the ones I'm seeing in Bloomies.
Current/Elliot jeans are cute, but they also come with a pricetag of $200+. Boyfriend jeans are also easy to make and in fact I'm going to try my hand at these too! I have some light wash slouchy bootcut jeans that I'm going to hand distress. You could do bootcut or even some skinnies and distress them yourself with a cheese grater, or just slicing a few holes into them with scissors or a knife. Run them through the washer and dryer and no one will be the wiser. Plus, a lot of the boyfriend jeans have a man crotch and I really doubt we're going to think that's hot next year. If you still are into it, you might again want to try a thrift store and buy a pair of men's jeans or steal from your real boyfriend but it's unlikely his will fit (they'll probably be too big for you!)
Slouchy tees are easy too- a lot of the ones that are sold are literally hand stretched. So if there's a shirt that you're over, try stretching it out and experimenting with stretching out the collar, sleeves and body. Take cues from Alexander Wang or his muse Erin Wasson - this trend is all their fault because they handstretched their own shirts first.
There you have it! 3 trends from your own closet.

DSquared's fantastically awesome social commentary

DSquared sent an interesting accessory down the runway in Milan. Starbucks cups were clutched in many a model's hand in their show inspired by L.A. girls after a hard night of partying. What a fabbie theme! Follow the link to see the show and pictures. http://www.graziadaily.co.uk/milan/archive/2009/03/02/the-morning-after-the-night-before-at--dsquared.htm

I would love to take a second to brag here and point out that I have recognized the beauty of this particular phenom before :) http://racked.com/archives/2008/12/04/olsen_twin_book_giveaway_we_have_a_winner.php
Yes, I won a signed copy of Influence for writing about the starbuck's grip in December.
Just because were in a recession and Starbuck's has been scaling back stores and even the CEO took a paycut to $10,000 a year, doesn't make Starbuck's any less iconic. Skinny L.A. chicks still need their coffee.

for those of you in the DC area

to stay on top of those fashion trends and to know when and where the good sales are you should be reading or subscribing to www.dcscout.com

It's by washingtonpost.com and has a ton of great information on events as well as great style advice!

Hippies continue to inspire spring fashion

Have you seen all the tie-dye in the Spring 2009 collections? It's unreal or should I say something totally cliche like, totally far out man! Jimmy Choo, D&G and Alice + Olivia, among others bring some 60s and 70s peace and love to the mix. I'm wondering if perhaps the revival of Hair last summer in Central Park is to blame for the resurgence of the summer of love?
Tie-dye is one of the "it" prints this spring and is absolutely everywhere as a result. I have to tell you, the Rebecca Minkoff tie-dye addition to her classically shaped Morning After bag (pictured right) might be calling my name, loudly... Also as an FYI, printed and patterned bags are pretty big for spring, so one might as well combine two trends into one great accessory (accessories are usually the easiest way to experiment with trends). Miss Sixty ran with this trend and kicked it one step further showing totes in the same print as their dresses on the runway.

You can channel your inner 70s sweetheart over and over for spring with the many bohemian inspired pieces quite similar to tie-dye but instead are dip-dyed for the ombre effect. Ombre (fading from a darker color to a lighter tone) has been a key look for Fall and Winter 2008, so it's no surprise to see it continue and evolve throughout the spring. Might I suggest this ombre maxi dress from Alice + Olivia? Yes, long maxi dresses are still big for the spring too! So if you hadn't been brave enough to try one last spring or summer, you should definitely get one for this spring.

Tribal prints, ikats, and batiks also have their role in spring and you'll see on various style and retail sites (Bloomingdales and Shopbop both have great trend presentations for Spring expounding on the bohemian and tribal looks I touched on here)many tops, dresses and bags with these bold prints are categorized as global or traveler trends or gypsy- boho or neo-hippy. I'd like to think of us as the echo boom flower children, but I digress. I think that Tory Burch has really done well with the ikats and tribals for spring and she has issued her classic canvas totes and tunics in various prints that support the global hippy aesthetic quite well.

Of course the trend has been in the works for a long while now, but you can still throw on a headband like Rachel Bilson (pictured), Nicole Richie or Mischa Barton - and flash a smile and a peace sign like LiLo if you would like to embrace the spirit of the trend without buying a whole new wardrobe.