From Head to Toe

You know the trend, you have seen the clothes, now check out the shoes. Here are some examples of showing your support of the sport inspired trend with your feet.....

Look Ma, New Shoes

So the BET awards came on Sunday night but I didn't get to see the entire show so I went online to check out the fashions from the show since of course seeing what everyone wears is the best part! While flipping through the photo album I came across Eva Marcille who went simple and chic in her clothing and let her shoes do all the talking. After doing some research, I found where her shoes were from. Check out the shoes Eva wears in addition to some of Gasoline Glamour's other shoe creations.

check out http://www.gasolineglamour.com/ to see more of their shoes and other accessories

Friday Night Lights

Inspiration is a funny thing, it can come from almost anywhere. 2010 brings fashion trends with roots steeped deep in sports wear. Designers have taken the ruff and tumble uniforms of America's most popular sport and smoothed out the edges just enough to find the perfect balance between the toughness of the sport which the trend was inspired by and the softness of lady-like femininity needed to pull off the look. Check out some of Alexander Wang's fashions inspired by the battle of the pig skin.

Shoulder pad sleeves mixes with soft fabrics and cropped tops for the feminine element

No captain's uniform is complete without their Letterman's jacket. The effortless tomboy feel created by the jacket is balanced by the feminine feel of sheer fabrics and high heel lace up peep-toe boots

Wang brings the active wear lace up element to shorts paired with a cropped, shoulder pad top in a cotton, sweat shirt inspired fabric. Knee high socks add the final touch to this football practice inspired outfit

Whats more feminine than a little shine and sparkle? Mixed on top is again high shoulders on a cropped top and side-piped fitted pants with a V-shaped waistline to expose the mid drift, again aiming to balance feminine and tough

Some key elements to keep in mind to successfully pull off the sport-inspired look:

1. keep the balance between tomboy and glamour - You want to make sure the look is not sloppy but you don't want to go overboard on glamour and over styling either

2. Always pair with sexy, sports inspired heels - choosing high heels (wedges and lace up options) to pair with the more relaxed appeal of active wear will help insure your look doesn't become too sloppy and come across as gym inspired instead of active wear inspired

3. Don't over do hair - keep hair a bit messy, a loose side ponytail is a great option

4. Lace-Up Options - cross lacing reminiscent of baseball gloves and lace-up pants are a great sports inspired touch

Splurge vs Steal

So the day has finally come and again I'm so excited because I get to do one of my favorite things, talk about shoes! Id rather be actually shopping for these shoes but I will settle for window shopping, or actually Internet shopping for splurge vs steal duos. Here is one I found I'm really excited about because these two really are very similar, from the flower detail in the sheer lace to the leather panel across the back of the shoe. Take a look at these two pics and see if you can guess which is the splurge and which is the steal. Before you scroll to the bottom of the pic, see if you can guess how much each cost....

SHOE A

SHOE B

Steal: Shoe A - Found at Macy's, regularly $69.00 on sale for $48.30

Splurge: Shoe B - Found at bluefly.com, retail value $995, on sale for $796.00

Talk about a steal! A shoe on par with the sheer trend for under $50, not always easy to do. But if you are able to make it happen, it feels like a real accomplishment, that's how it feels to me anyway. The thing to keep in mind when trying a new trend, don't splurge on a trend that may have a short life cycle or that you just want to experiment with. Save splurges for classics that you will get a lot of use out of and that will be a versatile piece that will be an addition to what you already have in your closet...

So this completes my first week of blogging and I must say I'm really enjoying it and I am really getting into the whole process! I think for my first week, I'm pretty satisfied with what I have done and how much I have learned from all my trial and error. Thanks to the "pro" bloggers that lended a hand to the rookie and to all my friends and family who are supporting my new blogging adventure! Check back in next week for another great summer trend!

with Sole,

Bianca

Sheer Inspiration

Being the shoe lover that I am, I never pass up the chance to talk about shoes. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to show you how the sheer movement has made its way from clothes to shoes... I hope you enjoy this collection of sheer shoe madness as much as I did!

Here are some sheer inspired soles from Christian Louboutin, who was motivated by the sheer movement...

Louboutin does mesh side panels in this signature very high heeled, silver platform stiletto

This colorful peep-toe heel is sheer with an embroidered flower overlay

White done right -the entire front of this ankle strap shoe is sheer!

Here is the same shoe from just above done in black


be sure to check back later this week for splurge vs steal, I will take gotta have designer shoes and find look-a-likes that are closer to your budget (and mine!)

Sheer Genius

I know we have made it into Summer but a big trend on the runway for Spring was sheer fabrics. Considering how incredibly hot Summer is shaping up to be, this might be one Spring trend that extends into Summer. Keeping in mind an exposed bra is not the ideal look for every occasion, don't be surprised to see a little peek-a-boo action popping up this summer....

Peter Copping for Nina Ricci does casual sheer with a floral bra and oversized cardigan, for a more office appropriate look,button or belt the cardigan with just a hint of sheer peeking from underneath

Dior takes on sheer in full color, head to toe red. With a slight adjustment,changing the bra to a camisole, this would be a way to do sheer without over exposure

Antonio Berardi gets in on the sheer action with transparent corseted tops and full sheer corseted dresses