FASHION VICTIM - Stepping to the Bad Side

FASHION VICTIM
Fall 2009
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Frockology Style Tip:
If you find it impossible to take even a single step without the worry of breaking an ankle, take note you have just become a Fashion Victim. Always be in control of your style, never let it rule, when it does you will almost always be a victim of fashion.

MOLLIE PARNIS - Golden Girl

Mollie Parnis

(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1960s.

When the dress code says Festive, we think that is always a good time to shine. This is a great example of sensual elegance, can be warm and covered up yet bare shouldered and provocative. We call that the best combo for a festive evening.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When having metallic brocade trimmed fur cleaned, it is best to have the fur trim removed before using a specialty dry cleaner and then having the fur reattached. It is a always better to be safe then fur less.

CELEBRITY VINTAGE SIGHTING - Marisa Tomei

Marisa Tomei
Vintage Jean Desses - French
MOCA New Gala
Los Angeles

BILL BLASS - Elegant Animal

Bill Blass
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1980s.

Elegant animals are always welcome at even the most urban of affairs. Bill Blass was always the go to designer for the strong yet feminine female of the species. This cocktail dress will make him hear the call of the wild, it will be up to you to tame him.
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Frockology Style Tip:
Anytime you are working with a long sash, wrap it in different ways to create many moods. If you just wrap it and tie it, you will look like many others, yet if you wrap it with your own signature you have instantly become a trend setter.

DONNA KARAN - Who Says Smoking Is Bad

Donna Karan
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1980s.

Three easy pieces will always make your life less complicated.Wrap this silk smoking jacket over a bodysuit and harem pants, and let the games begin. Always great for travel but equally as comfortable on the town. Now, who says smoking is bad for you.
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Frockology Style Tip:
Always have at least one light weight wrap style jacket in your style arsenal. They work as a blouse equally as well as a light jacket for warmth. Can be worn over anything to add a bit of punch. We all like a little punch now and again.

ADELE SIMPSON - Let The Good Plaids Roll

Adele Simpson
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1980s.

Sometimes you just want to zip and go, you slept late ect..... so hit the shower, grab some lipstick, twist your hair up in a messy french twist and step into this comfortable sheath and slide on your white rimmed shades and hit the door. Dressing made simple, elegant and modern.
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Frockology Care Tip:
Watch what you eat and drink when wearing silk. It seems to attract spills, if this happens always spot clean as soon as possible so the stain will not have time to set. Never rub when spot cleaning silk always dab dry and repeat till the stain dissipated. If you rub you tend to separate the fibers and can cause imperfections in the weave. You know you don't want an imperfect weave.

GIVENCHY - Soutache Me Baby

Givenchy
(click photo for more details)
French - Circa.1970s.

Givenchy always tailored his clothing to showcase the feminine. When working in a tailored manner he would still cut and sculpt his fabrications to follow the female form, rendering even the most structured with a visual flow. You will never go wrong collecting and wearing Givenchy, it is always as elegant as it is comfortable.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When you need a day to evening look that is both professional and comfortable, a matching jacket and skirt is a great way to go. Just change your accessories and shoes and always remember pearls and velvet for a quick switch to evening will work every time.

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YVES SAINT LAURENT - In The Navy

Yves Saint Laurent

(click photo for more details)
French - Circa.1970s.

Yves Saint Laurent is the most important designer of the late 20th Century. His genius change the face of fashion on more then one occasion. Taking inspiration from the youth in the streets who at the time were wearing old military jackets to show their non conformity to fashion, creates an iconic piece of fashion history. The pea coat shows up many times through out his design life, always looking fresh, crisp and modern.
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Frockology Style Tip:
Choose iconic fashion pieces for your style investments as they will always look modern no matter the year they were created. It is your quick fads that age and fade quickly. Lesson learned always invest in style never fashion.

GALANOS - An Apple A Day

James Galanos
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1980s.

Galanos gave us ready to wear that rivaled the best of European couture. His attention to detail as well as his hand finishing techniques were second to none. To wear Galanos is to experience the best in American design.
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Frockology Care Tips:
Always brush with a clothes brush after each wearing to remove dirt. Never store your winter garments on wire or thin plastic hangers always use sturdy wood to help retain the shape. Never store your winter garments in plastic, it retains any moisture and traps air leaving them with a stale smell that will be hard to remove. Treat then well and they will take care of you in the future.

PIERRE CARDIN - Space Age Goes Jazz Age

Pierre Cardin
(click photo for more details)
French - Circa.1970s.

Pierre Cardin is a master at reflecting current influences through his creative career. He goes as easily from slender sophistication to space age modern on through soft and sculptural to hard edged chic, always catching just the right mood. Here he takes the influences of the Jazz Age and gives us a look that transcends time and place, yet is elegant as well as wearable and modern.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When wearing a look that has a distinct flavor of place or time, you have a decision to make. Do you play up the time and place or do you take the look past period and into the modern. Either works as long as you don't veer into costume land and find yourself without a party to attend.

DONALD BROOKS - Check This

Donald Brooks
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1960s.

Sometimes you just don't feel like dealing with a coat when it's cold outside. Yet you want to be warm and cozy. Here is a great way to have both, just add tights and bold white rimmed shades and you will be hot inside or out.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When working bold or graphic prints always remember that proportion is the key to a successful look. If the print is predominantly square then make the accessories more rounded and vice verse. You get the idea, contrast is always key to a graphic look.

TODD OLDHAM - Spring 1993

TODD OLDHAM - Poncho Me Now

Todd Oldham
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1990s.

Don't you just love to be comfortable as well as casual but also fashionable? The answer is Yes. We all do, and with this Oldham poncho you can be super comfortable but yet very fashion forward.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When being comfortable, you need to also be fashionable. Comfortable is not an excuse for sloppy you still need to have a look that is casual but put together with eye catching accessories and the right attitude. We don't mean stretch pants a frown and bagel!

ANNE KLEIN - Toutcha Toucha Touch It

Anne Klein
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1970s.

If you feel the need for a stroke then this is the skirt of you, because it attracts attention as everyone wants to pet it. It is silky plush and feels sumptuous to the touch. So wear it and be popular, just expect the unexpected.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When wearing a bold print always wear a solid somewhere to give the eye a place to rest, as well as balance the print.

ADOLFO - Santana Feels So Right

Adolfo

(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1970s.

Always reach for Adolf when you want to be elegantly comfortable. Some choose St. John santana knit but a true collector of vintage clothing will always reach for Adolfo.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When wearing knit always accessorize with items that have no catches or clasps or prongs that can catch in the knit. In knitwear, any brake in the fabric and you will immediately start to unravel. Also when put on or off never pull the garment but always place it to avoid stretching out of shape.

ARNOLD SCAASI - That Old Black Magic

Arnold Scaasi
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1980s.

That old black magic will have you in its spell once again with this Arnold Scaasi. No one takes on evening in the same manner as Scaasi, he embraces it with the love of the craft of true dressmaking. His work is always crisp,clean and extremely well made, they fit like a dream and wear like iron, who can ask for anything more.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When working with and wearing sequins or beads, if you see a stray thread.....NEVER PULL IT......always, if there is enough tread knot it behind the sequin or bead, if knot then wrap it around the sequin or bead tightly. Nothing like a line of missing beads or sequins to ruin a girls night.

YVES SAINT LAURENT - The Russian is Here

Yves Saint Laurent
(click photo for more details)
French - Circa.1970s.

Yves Saint Laurent was perhaps the most important designer of the last half of the 20th Century. His design aesthetic changed the direction of fashion on more then one occasion, taking inspiration from the street, books and art as well as historical places and events, he internalized and from that created very memorable wearable art.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When working with a long scarf or shawl try not to just wrap it around your throat, give it a personality of its own and let it say something about itself as well as you.

LOUIS FERARD - Plesant Peasant

Louis Feraud
(click photo for more details)
French - Circa.1960s.

French couture from the sixties in mint condition, not easy to find but extremely easy to wear. Louis Feraud during this period was influenced by the counter culture of youth, yet still maintaining the quality and refinement of the finest in French couture.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When dealing with rare quality garments it is always best to store them in acid free boxes wrapped in acid free tissue, this will avoid any hanger disfigurements and allow the garment to breath as well as maintain its true shape.

GEOFFREY BEENE - Metallica Me

Geoffrey Beene
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1980s.

Gold and Black metallic trimmed in black tipped gold lace skirt and bolero sounds like the beginning of a great evening, but throw Geoffrey Beene into the mix and it quickly becomes something bigger. The mix master is once again at work and adds a cream fagot stitch cotton traditional shirt under the bolero, and we all take a second look, and thinking, "wish I had thought of that".
Just one of the reasons Beene is considered one of the masters of American fashion.
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Frockology Style Tip:
Take a cue from Mr. Beene and always add a bit of a wild card into your fashion mix. If you are leaning in the sophisticated direction done up in silk and satin, perhaps add a lacquered straw box as an evening clutch. Always make them go .......H'mmmmm! One of the many ways to lead fashion.

KOOS VAN DEN AKKER - Patchwork Celeberation

Koos Van Den Akker
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1970s.

A celebration of life is the significance behind the patchwork inspirations of Koos Van Den Akker. After World War II the Dutch women used scraps of fabric from what was left of their families clothing and sewed them together into patchwork skirts to signify survival and the continuation of life, a beautiful tradition that is still active today. A profound inspiration for a young Dutch designer.
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Frockology Style Tip:
Always incorporate different found objects that are only significant to you into your style. Following fashion can be fun but never become a Fashion Drone, not only is it dull but it is also says: I can't think for yourself, and that's just not true. Is it?

OSCAR DE LA RENTA - Red Is Never Dead

Oscar de la Renta
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1960s.

Red is never dead, it is the color of passion and we are all for some passion, how about you. A great look when you want to be alluring yet covered up. Think holiday party at your bosses house.... provocative but proving it now that would be a bit more difficult.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When having any fabric with a metallic thread woven into cleaned always specify no high heat press, because the heat can melt and discolor the metallic quality of the thread. Ask for it to be hand steamed or better yet steam it with a hand held steamer once you have it back in your hot little hands.

MARY MCFADDEN - India via 19th Century England

Mary McFadden
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1970s.

Bold and beautiful with a whisper of historic reference is a great way to describe the work of Mary McFadden. Her couture is always executed with the hand of an artist, here her silk gazar fabrication is hand painted to reflect the color and symbols of India yet cut in a style reminiscent of 19th Century England.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When dealing with anything that is hand painted always have your dry cleaner do a test with their cleaning chemicals on a seam area first to see if it will cause any type of chemical breakdown. It is only good to wear modern art when you planned it.

BILL BLASS - Make Mine Geisha

Bill Blass
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1970s.

The holiday season is here again and it is time to start planning our looks for the festivities. We like anything that can be mixed into our existing style, so a dress with a jacket is always welcome. We break them up and quickly, because it is time to move on into a modern world of separate but equal.
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Frockology Style Tip:
Always break up a set, it will give you more options in your wardrobe as well as allow you to see your look in a different way. We are all for expressing our fashion in various ways its wonder to behold.

PERRY ELLIS - Playful Schoolgirl Looks Right

Perry Ellis
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1990s.

Who wouldn't like to return to the carefree days of being a schoolgirl. Well here is a great outfit for capturing that feeling again. Take this Marc Jacobs design from his time at Perry Ellis and just add a pink poplin shirt and some brogues and you instantly are working that vibe.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When you have a great suit with a hip length jacket don't pass up the opportunity to take the jacket and skirt and mix them with other items in your style closet. Mix the skirt with a cable knit sweater or the jacket over jeans and a turtleneck. Now, mix it your way.

ROMEO GIGLI - Skin Tight Just Right

Romeo Gigli
(click photo for more details)
Italian - Circa.1980s

Skin tight can be just right depending on where and who. This body conscious take on spandex is meant to grab attention while remaining a bit playful with the peek a boo crop top. She who wears the spandex gets to make the rules.
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Frockology Care Tip:
When dealing with garments with a lot of stretch in them, always if possible hand wash them and lay flat to dry. Any heat source tends to cause the stretch to begin to loose its elastic properties quickly, and we all know a lop sided bondage dress just looks like a wreck.

EMANUEL UNGARO - Strong Shoulder Soft Body

Emanuel Ungaro
(click photo for more details)
French - Circa.1980s.

We all need a strong shoulder, it gives us a feeling of power with out dressing like wonder woman, and yet allow us to remain soft when it counts. Here is a great example by the man that first put us in a strong shoulder. Strong yet soft without that over the top exaggeration of super bigger then big shoulders. We love Ungaro and he loved all women and it shows.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When wearing a strong shoulder to keep it modern never bring emphasis to the waist. Each time you draw attention to the waist while wearing a strong shoulder you instantly begin to scream look I'm an extra on Dynasty. We don't want you to get bitched slapped by Alexis so keep your silhouette close to the body yet letting the shoulders be the only focal point.

MALCOLM STARR - Grey Flannel Never Looked So Good

Malcolm Starr
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1970s.

Sometimes you wish you could go to a dress event in your flannel bathrobe, you know you do. Well here is a great alternative, a gray wool flannel with beaded detail jumpsuit, almost like a onsie for adults. Elegant and comfortable now that is a great combo.
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Frockology Care Tip:
We love a jumpsuit but also understand the pit falls of wearing on, going to the loo. So we recommend taking along a large cotton or rayon scarf (anything washable) to drape on the floor before taking down the jumpsuit. When finished just fold and place in a zip lock and back into your bag, presto you have relief.

TRIFARI - Flipping for Alfred Phillip

Trifari
(click photo for more details)
American - Circa.1950s.

We love a drop dead piece of vintage jewelry and we bet you do as well. This Alfred Phillip for Trifari will make you swoon. Working for Trifari since the Jazz Age he changed the face of faux jewelry in America, taking it and making it as beautiful as anything considered fine jewelry. As collectible as it is beautiful, this necklace is an elegant piece of history.
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Frockology Style Tip:
As much as we love jewelry that lights up the night, we sometimes like to have a bit of sparkle during the day. Take a choker with a bit of sparkle and wear it with a crisp collar closed close to the throat and let a little sparkle catch the eye.

BEN-AMUN - Stop Lights Never Looked So Good

Ben-Amun
(click photo for more details)
Egyptian - Circa.1980s.

Stop, look and admire these stop light colored jeweled earrings from Isaac Manevitz. They will catch more then just the light day or night so wear with caution.
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Frockology Style Tip:
When wearing bold earrings always remember to keep your hair back aways from them, using the hair as a frame to showcase keeps it from getting tangled with the jewelry. Playing with your ear seductively is a go, however tugging with hair around your ear is is a definite turn off.

CARLOS FALCHI - It's Hard To Stop a Buffalo

Carlos Falchi
(click photo for more details)
Brazilian - Circa.2005.

It's hard to stop a buffalo especially if it is one made by Carlos Falchi. His handcrafted leather work is unique an is always recognized as Falchi creation. the buffalo is his signature piece evolving from his beginnings as a designer. Anyone starting a Falchi collection, this would be the style to start that collection.
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Frockology Style Tip:
A casual bag no matter how great it is will not always work in every style situation. Always match your bag to the occasion. Next time your out look around you, the bags that are wrong are the ones you notice first. Think about it!