The September Issue

I just came across this on a fellow fashion blogger's blog, Clutch 22, and wanted to share it with you all! I can't wait!!

Premiered: January 16th, 2009
U.S. Theatrical Release: August 28th, 2009
The September 2007 issue of Vogue magazine weighed nearly five pounds, and was the single largest issue of a magazine ever published. With unprecedented access, The September Issue, directed and produced by R.J. Cutler, tells the story of legendary Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour and her larger-than-life team of editors creating the issue and ruling the world of fashion.

The September Issue won the Grand Jury Prize for Excellence in Cinematography at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. (more details)

Congrats Crystalyn Kae handbags

Attention please!! If you didn't already know, local designer, Crystalyn Kae, has had her handbags make it to the big screen! Congrats girl!

Her Metier Tote and Pleated Clutch were carried by actress Alexie Gilmore, who stars opposite Robin Williams in the independent film "World's Greatest Dad".

The film was shot entirely in Seattle and has been shown at film festivals such as Sundance and SIFF. ("World's Greatest Dad" will open nationwide at select theaters in late August.)

Read all about her new found celebrity on her blog!

Angela Miller Purse Party - June 25th!

Tomorrow night you should head a bit North to the Alderwood Mall for the Angela Miller Purse Party. It will be held from 6-9pm at Angela Miller (3000 184th St. Lynnwood, WA 98037) which is located inside the Alderwood Mall.

They will have Godiva chocolates and swag bags for the first 25 through the door! Some of the amazing items featured in those bags will be from Gene Juarez, Tully's, Crabtree and Evelyn and more! They will also be bringing fabulous new bags into the store (ie. Isabella Fiore) for your shopping pleasure.

Happy shopping ladies and please report back as we're dying to hear how it goes!!

Aficionado Opens This Weekend

I got an email today about Africando opening this weekend and it included a Q&A... So, I thought I would share that info just in case you were wondering...

Q. Are women invited to the party?
A. Absolutely! JAXX Boutik will be open in conjunction with the party.

Q. Can I bring friends to the party?
A. This party is open to everyone. The more the merrier!

Q. Did Kimberly really break her leg?
A. Do you believe everything you read in STAR Magazine? Pictures can be so deceiving.

Q. Is there a discount?
A. The first 50 people to arrive will receive a $50.00 gift card towards their first purchase at Aficionado and/or JAXX Boutik.

Q. Any other benefits to me?
A. Glad you asked! Just by showing up one lucky guy and one lucky girl are entered to win a $1000 shopping spree at Aficionado and Jaxx Boutik.

Q. Will the Aficionado Top Runway Models be there to sign autographs?
A. The paparazzi are hot on their trail so they are keeping a low profile, but quite a few will definitely be in attendance. Keep this on the downlow.

Q. I do believe everything in this town, did she break her leg?
A. Look, we didn't want get into this, but there is a cast and crutches. We cannot give out further details.

Q. Will there be entertainment?
A. Yes! Belly Dancers and a Deejay - need we say more!

Q. No further details?!? C'mon how did she break it?
A. Further details on Kimberly's leg and Aficionado Top Models can be found on www.perezhilton.com.

Ok, so some of it may be some inside joke that I'm on the outside of... So if you know what all the broken leg/America's Next Top Models talk is all about let me know.

Aficionado Grand Opening Store Party Thursday, June 25th at 5pm ~ 2345 Eastlake Avenue East

My New Report Shoes

I headed East to Bellevue this morning to check out the Report Shoes Sample Sale and man, am I glad I did!! I was expecting a line of ladies when we arrived at 10am but there weren't any at all. We walked right in and joined the women already shopping around. Thankfully there weren't to many at that time so we got first dibs on alot of cute shoes. (It strated to fill up shortly after though).

There were so many cute pairs for $15/$25 that were once $75 and higher... I ended up buying 4 pairs total but could have easily walked out with more. I had a pair of boots in my possession for quite awhile but decided on a pair of heels instead since I won't be wearing those boots anytime soon... You know, with Summer and all... I also was drooling over 3 pairs of HOT trendy heals from their signature collection that were $70 each but originally in the $200 range. It was really hard to decide!

In the end, I went with the idea of what am I really going to get use out of right now. So, I bought 2 pairs of sandals (Tori by R2 and Rayne by Report Footwear), a pair of grey flats (Laney by Report) and a hot pair of their signature line brown Hearst heals.

There was no tax and the money goes to charity - what could be more perfect when shopping for shoes... or anything for that matter!

The sale ends at 1pm so you still have time to head over if you are reading this right now!!! (520 is closed so expect traffic coming home)

Thank you Report for having a sample sale... I'll be at your next one, no worries! Oh and thank you Nurit for meeting up with me, it was fun shoe shopping with you!

Old Navy Tanks $2 Today Only!

Oh snap!! You can never have too many rib-knit tanks! Head on over to your neighborhood Old Navy and snatch up some ribbed tanks today while they are just 2 bucks!!

They are available in 50 color choices including solid, stripe, print and embellished… they won’t last long!

*Please note this promotion is available in stores only with a limit of 5 per customer on select styles only while supplies last.

Bon Voyage!

Tonight, in Capitol Hill, Melissa and myself attended the bon voyage party for Bouncing Wall. They have closed thier physical shop but will still be selling online and having Shop Social events. Head on over to their website and sign up for their emails so you'll be in the know! You can't expect me to tell you EVERYTHING!

I was one of the first 30 to RSVP so I snagged a fan-tab-ulous swag bag of all types of goodies! I've laid them out for you and taken a picture for you all to see. I can't help it, I love free stuff! Show me someone who doesn't!

Melissa and I were starving so after a glass of wine and minlging at the party we headed over to the much raved about Marination Mobile. I ordered a miso ginger chicken taco, a kalbi steak taco and a Spam musubi. Melissa had the tofu tacos. It was all so very DELICIOUS!

Melissa had to head out to meet another friend so I went over to Via Tribunali for a glass of Proseco and to look through my swag bag as I hadn't done that yet. After my drink I headed back to the Bouncing Wall party to buy a necklace I had my eye on and couldn't stop thinking about. After I bought it I had the pleasure of meeting the artist, Shayla Rasmussen of Shay D Designs, who was also enjoying the party. So, do you love it?

Jimmy Choo's for THE PEOPLE - Rejoice!

I just read this article and it brought great joy to me as I am one of the people who loves Jimmy Choo but refuses to shell out the cash for their shoes. Now the people too can wear the Choo!

Jimmy Choo shoes inspire visions of stiletto perfection, mile-long gams and red-carpet glamour, and now we have another reason to love them—great prices. This fall, the brand—which counts Jennifer Lopez, Cameron Diaz and Michelle Obama as fans—is partnering with one of our favorite cheap-and-chic labels, H&M, on a collection of drool-worthy shoes, bags and clothing. The lineup includes this sexy, strappy stiletto (left), reminiscent of the covetable Choos Vanessa Hudgens recently wore to the MTV Movie Awards. Mark your calendars now—the new Jimmy Choo for H&M collection debuts November 14th at H&M stores nationwide.

Article found at InStyle by Joyann King.

REPORT Footwear Sample Sale

Lately, I have been seeing a lot of gorgeous shoes by Report and Report signature at local fashion shows. I am so excited to find out that they will be having a Sample Sale (13150 SE 32nd St in Bellevue) on June 20th from 10am - 1pm. Now I can go and pysically check them out for myself and stock up!

All of the net proceeds from the sale will go to New Beginnings which is a non-profit, battered women’s shelter in Seattle. They will be selling women’s shoes in all sizes and styles from REPORT, REPORT Signature, R2 and Rocawear.

Will you be there too?

Ok, so as I was saying, I have been seeing these shoes a lot... The last two places were at the Save the Girls event and in the Vantha Ry fashion show (Blush Event) - (I have linked you to the photos of the events so you can see for yourself if you weren't there).

The Parasol Party Wrap-Up

Tonight, Melissa and I headed East to the Clise Mansion in Redmond to attend the Parasol Party put together by Courtney Russell of Half Past Lavish Events.

The Clise Mansion is tucked away in Marymoore Park, perfectly hidden by lush, bright kelly green trees. The grounds are very well manicured which only enhanced the parties setting. I can see why people get married there!

When we walked in, we were greated by several vendors selling jewelry, candles, adorable aprons, Lush soaps, handbags, cupcake decor and more. There was a table setup with candy and cupcakes - a delicious candy bar, anyone with a sweet tooth's mecca. (Um, yeah, that would be me!)

We headed outside to the bar and tried a pink champagne cocktail and loved EVERY second of it! Mingling ensued and pictures were taken... Women were getting manicures by Julep, foot rubs, massages and more. There were a lot of great things to do!

At around 8:30pm an announcement was made by Courtney for us all to head outside for the show. We all meandered to the back yard to grab our spots for the fashion show. After she gave away all of the door prizes (which I totally did not sign up for - whoops!) the fashion show began.

The first 3 models came out to a lovely French song in very adorable girly aprons made by Party Girl Aprons and the girls were carrying cupcakes decorated by Bella Cupcake Couture. It was hard not to buy one of those aprons at the end of the night - they really are cool!

Next, the Marie Antoinette inspired fashion show began - the girls were wearing clothing from Deco Modiste and carrying parasols by Bella Umbrella. The clothing was really fun and colorful!

It was a very enjoyable show and I'm glad I was able to attend. Thank you Courtney!

Check out my photos so you too can experience the evening.

Hermes... Really?

Hermes, a luxury label, has started breading their own crocodiles in Australia to meet the demand of their handbags... $60K handbags that is... Really, these people have nothing better to spend their money on than a purse made out of 3-4 crocodiles? Now this, I just don't get.

What do you think?

Bob Mackie and More...

Tonight I was invited by my friend, and FGI cohort, Courtney Russell of Half Past Lavish Events to attend the Spotlight Night for "Catch Me If You Can" at the 5th Ave Theater in Seattle.

I wasn't sure what to expect because I had no idea they did these spotlight events and wasn't sure what they entailed. Plus, it's free so I was even more baffled.

However, I am really happy I went because they introduce you to the people who have come up with the idea, or in this case have taken a story and made it into a musical. I saw the movie and really did enjoy it so I can only imagine I'll feel the same way about the play. We did get to hear a few songs from the performance and I must say they sounded amazing.

Infamous fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie is doing all of the costumes for the musical and they even showed us some of his sketchers... They were awesome! One thing I wish would have happened - more conversation with Bob Mackie. I would have liked it if more questions would have been asked of him, especially about the costumes. Oh well... I'll just have to go see them myself!

If this show takes off it will be another win for Seattle (Hello, Hairspray!) as it is being started here. It will be showing July 23rd - August 16th. I can't wait - the guy who plays Frank Abagnale Jr. (Aaron Tveit) is just a cutie and has an amazing voice. As you can see by the picture I have posted for you - A-D-O-R-A-B-L-E!


Here is how the evening was broken down:

Act 1
The Incredible True Story
Catch Me If You Can is inspired by the real life story of teenage con man Frank Abagnale who lived the high life during the swinging ‘60s by successfully posing as a Pan Am pilot, a doctor, and lawyer while passing millions of dollars in forged checks. David Armstrong will recount Frank’s amazing journey and bring us up-to-date on Frank’s true crime adventures on both sides of the law.
Special Guest – Ken Kirkpatrick, President of US BANK

Act 2
Meet the Dream Team
Catch Me If You Can’s creative team is an extraordinary collection of Tony Award-winning artists. Songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), playwright Terrence McNally (The Full Monty), director Jack O’Brien (Hairspray), choreographer Jerry Mitchell (Hairspray, Legally Blonde), musical director John McDaniel and legendary costume designer Bob Mackie will give you an inside look into their creative process and show us how a Broadway musical is conceived and created – from page to stage!

Act 3
Meet the Stars
Catch Me If You Can features a remarkable company of actors from New York and Seattle and led by some of Broadway’s brightest lights. Meet three of our show’s leading men: Tony Award-winning star Norbert Leo Butz, exciting Broadway newcomer Aaron Tveit and Broadway and television star Tom Wopat. You will also be the first audience anywhere to hear songs from the brilliant ‘60s pop-infused score!

Featuring Musical Performances by Marc Shaiman, Norbert Leo Butz, Aaron Tveit and Tom Wopat.

Ok, so go tell some friends and let's all meet at the theater in July! Who's with me?!

Win Free Tickets!

Haven't bought your tickets for the Parasol Party yet? Well, here's your chance to win a free pair for this Half Past Lavish produced "girl's night out!" Go to www.halfpastlavish.com/ParasolParty to check out the details and then leave a comment here with which sponsor you would be most excited to see and you just might win a pair of tickets to the event. All comments must be posted by Tuesday at midnight (pacific time).

The winner will be announced Wednesday morning.

Winner will be added to the Parasol Party guest list.

The Parasol Party is on Thursday 6/11 from 7pm - 9pm at the Clise Mansion in Marymoor Park in Redmond, WA.

I'm Famous...

Ok, maybe not, but I was excited to find out my picture made it onto the Seattle Times website via the All You Can Eat blog. (I'm in the 3rd picture).

Hubby and I went to see Anthony Bourdain and Mario Batali speak at the Paramount last week. It was very enjoyable and funny!

My favorite quote of the night was "I can teach a chimp to cook but I can't teach a chimp to love it" - Mario Batali. (That could really apply to anything!)

May I point out that I am wearing a new dress that I had bought that day from Bouncing Wall in QA by a local designer, RiKARiKA Designs. I LOVE the dress. I plan to do a little write up on it and a super cool ring I got from another local designer, Zuz K. Jewelry. stay tuned!!

Featured Designer for June

Marlo Miyashiro of Tote2Go! is a woman of many talents! She has been featured on UFN for her beautiful jewelry but now we are featuring her for her fun and colorful line of reusable shopping bags.

Not only are they ingenious, as they fold up into a small pouch you can carry with you, but they are made from recycled fabrics. Oh and did we mention cute, fun and stylish?

Check out Marlo's Q&A to learn more about how she came up with the idea and where she is headed in the near future!