Ladurée Has Come To America

Images: nymag.com

I love macaroons and after a disastrous three hour attempt to make them, that my boyfriend will likely never forgive me for, I have a whole new appreciation for these french treats.  Luckily Ladurée, the originator of the modern French macaroon, two cookies sandwiched with ganache, has come to America.  The paistry shop has hit New York and as of now is a very small shop, but they plan to open a traditional tea room in S.O.H.O. eventually. Ladurée sells 15,000 macaroons a day alone, all of which are made in Paris and shipped to various locations overnight.  The Manhattan store is  decorated in the traditional French style and even has French staff.  Does Ladurée's pastries look familiar to you?  They made all of the dessert's for the film Marie Antoinette.  If I ever go to New York, I know where my first stop will be!   

Vogue Enfants

Images: weheartit.com

It seems like children are everywhere in fashion these days, Hailee Steinfeld is the face of Miu Miu and Elle Fanning had a spread in Vogue's August issue.  The trend continues in this insert from Vogue Paris shows children in miniature outfits of clothes I would want to wear! I never dressed this chic when I was a child, but then again these children are French.

Poppy King For J. Crew

Images: theglossarie, net-a-porter.com

The internet has been buzzing about the new Poppy King for J. Crew lipstick and I have to say I agree with the hype.  This red coral combination is exactly the kind of lipstick I like, a casual color that is strong enough to require very little effort with the rest of your make-up.  With this color a natural eye and a little peach blush is all you need to look pulled together.  These J. Crew items will go perfectly with this shade of lipstick and are great pieces to add to your fall wardrobe.  The color is sold out so keep your eyes open in case they get more in stock, I know I will be! 

Polka Dots

Images: weheartit.com

Lately I have been thinking about polka dots for fall, especially on tights.  They seem to be everywhere lately, trench coats, dresses, scarves and more!  I love the spattering of tiny dots on the second photograph and the sheer blouse is so pretty.  These beautiful photographs are from Vogue Russia and feature model Hailey Clauson and were shot by Miguel Reveriego and you can see the rest of the spread here.  I love this entire spread, the ladylike blouses and tights make the outfits accessible during the colder weather and remain elegant and chic.

Kate Moss' Wedding

Images: weheartit.com

I have always had a fascination with weddings and Kate Moss' wedding was no exception.  Not to mention I was very curious to see what the dress by John Galiano as it is his first piece shown since his release from rehab and his exit from Christian Dior.  These beautiful pictures were taken by Mario Testino for Vogue; I am absolutely in love with the white theme.  I am not fond of overbearing color schemes for weddings, so I think white is absolutely perfect.  Everything from the flowers, to the cake, to the dress were picture perfect.

The Perfect Pumps

Images: jcrew.com

With fall right around the corner it is time to start adjusting to the colder weather that is coming our way.  As I talked about in a previous post, I want to wear tights with my dresses and skirts come fall and I will need to trade my open toed sling backs for closed toe pumps.  I love the J. Crew Mona pumps, they come in an array of colors and materials such as leather, suede, satin and more.  I prefer these lighter colored shades but they come in black, red, blue and almost any other color.  These classic pumps shown above are made of Italian leather and suede in Italy.  The leather pair will mold themselves to your foot after a few wears making them even better.  These chic classic heels will take you from season to season in style.   

Backstage: Elie Saab

Images: runwayfashionshows.com

While I previously posted looks from the Elie Saab fall 2011 Couture show, one really must see closer views to do the gowns justice.  The sheer glistening layers of fabric in the third and fourth picture are accentuated when shot while the models stand still; and the intricate bead work can be seen in better detail in all of the pictures. 

Ralph Lauren In Paris

Images: weheartit.com

I have always thought of the Ralph Lauren brand as classic American, the Paris flagship store is extremely French and very elegant.  The store is located in the Quatier Latin on the left bank housed in an 18th century mansion.  The store even contains a critically acclaimed restaurant, Ralph's, which boasts a menu of classic American food.

Simple Beauty At Valentino

Images: style.com

Fall for many is a very hectic time, a rush of going back to school and when that calms down the holiday rush begins.  That is why I favor simple hair and make-up for fall.  The pretty ponytails with a simple headband and neutral eye make-up at the Valentino Fall 2011 RTW collection are perfectly simple and very easy to obtain.  You can see some of my favorite outfits from the show in this previous post. 

What I Would Wear To: Saint Petersburg

Images: My personal Polyvore account, weheartit.com

I have recently had the ballet on my mind after seeing shots from the beautiful new J. Crew catalog featuring ballerinas from Saint Petersburg, some of which I featured in a previous post.  One day I would love to go see the ballet in Saint Petersburg Russia and would idealy wear an outfit similar to this.  I picked white as that is the color that comes to mind when I think of Russia and paired it with Manolo Blahnik and BCBG Max Azria feathered accessories that reminded me of Swan Lake.  And to top off the outfit, beautiful diamond jewelry from Harry Winston.

New Chanel Perfume

Image: weheartit.com

In honor of what would have been Coco Chanel's 128th birthday on August 19th, the house of Chanel has released an update on the No 19 Poudré perfume.  This was the last perfume that Mademoiselle created and she made it as a gift for herself.  The  new interpretation stays true to the original’s neroli top notes, iris heart, and vetiver base notes, adding mandarin orange, jasmine absolute, white musk, and tonka bean.  It was released yesterday at Saks and while in America we may have no problem getting our hands on a bottle, in France every new Chanel fragrance sells out very quickly because women line up to buy the new fragrance before even smelling them!

From J.Crew With Love

 Images: weheartit.com

I am sure there is no prettier combination than J. Crew cashmere sweaters and ballerinas, well at least in my opinion.  These photographs from J. Crew's spread From Russia With Love for their new fall catalog were taken at the Mariinsky and Yakobson dance school in Saint Petersburgh, Russia.  I think the pastel tutus and ribbons are the perfect backdrop for the gorgeous cashmere sweaters.  These pictures go perfectly with my previous post about my current fall desires.  You can see that ballerina inspired post here.

Dark Blue Nails

Images: weheartit.com

Although I have never strayed from sheer pinks and classic reds, I have recently been slightly drawn to navy blue nail polishes.  They look so pretty in the bottle, but I do not know how I would feel about them on my nails, I am going to try the color but I might use them on my toes where I feel I can be a little more adventurous.  I think it will make a nice fall color though and would look great with my new navy trench I told you about!

*Update*

After posting this I painted my nails a dark shiny blue, with no shimmer as I do not care for over sparkly nail polishes, and it turned out pretty well.  I kept my nails short and rounded, with dark colors I always keep them short as I feel it looks classier that way.  I like the color, the darkness is taking a little getting used to, but I will have to wait till fall to paint my nails this dark again as it looks a little strange with my summer clothes!  Overall it looks nice and I would recommend it.

Couture In Black And White

Images: weheartit.com

I find black and white photographs elegant, classic, and often times more interesting than color as more is left to the imagination.  I fell in love with this Vogue photo shoot many years ago and have never forgotten it.  I posted the equally gorgeous colored photos from this spread in a previous post.