Lauren Conrad’s Paper Crown In Stores Tomorrow

Monday August 1st marks the official launch of Lauren Conrad’s new clothing line Paper Crown. First announced in February this year, it’s one of the most highly anticipated launches ever by former Hills fans.
In all seriousness, it’s hard to deny that LC has anything but impeccable taste and is only in the beginning stages of creating a fashion empire.
Paper Crown is described on the website as “a collection for those who like to play dress up in a grown up world” and “the collection is comprised of ultra romantic maxis, chic cocktail attire, menswear inspired pieces and tailored basics.” Count us in.
Paper Crown’s first season will be available in select boutiques and retailers including Planet Blue, Fred Segal and Nordstrom with prices ranging from about $60 – $460.
Here’s a look at a few outfits featured in the Fall and Holiday lookbooks (you’ll want to make sure you have something handy to wipe up your drool).

Fall 2011

Holiday 2011

Need more? Look through the full lookbooks here.
Love LC’s style but don’t have a full fashion piggy bank? Check out the LC Lauren Conrad line at Kohl’s. While you won’t find perfectly tailored pieces in sumptuous materials, you will find stylish and reasonably priced items you’ll be happy to add to your wardrobe.

Spotlight On: Emma Stone

It’s not often you find someone who can pull off looking gorgeous as both a blond bombshell and a fiery redhead (sorry Blake).

But Emma Stone does just that, dazzling us with shades from platinum blonde to dark, rich auburn.

 
That isn’t the only reason we adore her. Beside seeming like the kind of girl we’d like to be best friends with, her sense of style is her own and she isn’t afraid to push the boundaries from time to time. And when she isn’t she still looks amazing.

She recently made a splash with the fashion community at the premiere of Friends with Benefits when she rocked this number.

Typically considered a major fashion faux-pas, Emma paired a red top with hot pink skirt and her bright red locks to blow our minds.
Just goes to show that breaking the rules isn’t always a bad thing.

Style Mission Impossible: Summer Hats

Let me start by saying that while I love the idea of hats, I don’t generally consider myself to be a “hat person.” The sad truth is that most hats just do not look good on me.

This has made my recent shopping excursions especially frustrating, as I’ve (still) been trying to find the perfect summer hat. While I do love the classic giant floppy beach sunhat, I’m looking for something a bit more versatile that can be worn out and about. This has proven to be quite the difficult goal, and one that I haven’t yet fulfilled.

Ashley believes that no one looks good in fedoras, but I tend to disagree. Just take a look at Blake Lively rocking an awesome green fedora and try to tell me she doesn’t look fabulous (granted, most of us do not look like Blake Lively, but this is still proof that looking good in a fedora is possible).

I’ve tried (semi) desperately to find the perfect fedora that will make me look impossibly adorable and cool at the same time in order to prove Ashley wrong but thus far have come up empty-handed.

I did find a cute cloche hat (below) that I enjoyed, although I couldn’t shake the thought that cloche hats belong in the fall and winter seasons.

And so I continue my search for the perfect summer hat even has summer is beginning to dwindle away. I’m not giving up hope yet that the right one is out there for me. Maybe it will even be on end of season clearance when I find it.

– Maureen

Trend Watch: Men’s Fall Styling

One of the major themes we’ll see for men’s fashion during fall/winter will be a return to old-world luxury. Think long overcoats (including military-inspired styles in olive, gray, and camel), luxe materials like velvet, cashmere and buttery-soft leather, and traditional patterns of tweed, herringbone and plaid.

Overall, men’s styling will focus on clean, tailored cuts – a marked departure from the current influx of skinny-cut hipster styles.

Style Icon: A Look Back At Jackie O

On what would be her 82nd birthday, we take a look back at some of the outfits that made Jackie O the fashion icon she remains to this day.

From the pillbox hats to pearls and signature sunglasses, she had the kind of natural beauty that’s difficult to find today.

Mary-Kate, Ashley & TOMS

Our favorite twins, MK + A, have given us even more reason to love them. The girls have teamed-up with the famously charitable brand TOMS to create a limited-edition line of shoes through their label The Row.  To commemorate the partnership, the duo even traveled to needy Central American communities to personally deliver the new kicks.  And in true Mary-Kate and Ashley fashion, the girls did not fail to keep it lavish,  choosing fabrics such as Italian wool and cashmere blends.  Fancy!

If you’re doing the math, this will quickly put each pair of shoes at roughly $150. But in keeping with TOMS tradition, for each generous purchase – one pair will also be donated to those less fortunate. So really, it’s all for a great cause. Which we say completely justifies the splurge.

Make It Work

Today is a special day. That’s because today marks the return of our favorite TV hosts and judges Heidi Klum, Tim Gunn, Michael Kors and Nina Garcia on season 9 of Project Runway.

Premiering tonight on Lifetime at 9EST/8CST, for the first time ever 20 designers will vie for 16 spots on the show. For those who don’t want to know any more about the episode, look away now! Consider this your warning.

After the 16 contestants are established, the first challenge will involve teams of two designing a “Larger than Life” runway look for models on stilts. When the episode was shot in June the runway show was open the public in Battery Park. Here’s a sneak peek of what’s in store.

We can’t wait for all the drama that will undoubtedly take us up to this moment.

Want more right now? Take a look at the 20 designers’ bios and portfolios here.

H&M Presents: David Beckham In His Underwear

David Beckham is the latest celeb/designer to ink a deal with a retailer. In May, he announced that he was planning a bodywear line for men. We’re now finding out that the line will be launching at H&M stores worldwide on February 2nd, 2012, delighting ladies around the globe who’ve always wanted their man to look like David Beckham.

David has said that he’ll be the face of the brand, so prepare for plenty of this in the future:

Thanks, H&M.

Our Thoughts: Jessica Simpson’s Wedding Dress

Who can forget Jessica Simpson’s surprise engagement to Eric Johnson merely a week after the announcement of ex-husband Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo’s engagement? With Nick and Vanessa’s wedding in the rear view mirror, all eyes are now turning to Jessica as she prepares for her big day.

The date is a secret, but the couple has previously said they plan to marry before the end of the year. Even so, Jessica said this week that she still doesn’t have a wedding dress. Here are a few of our thoughts and ideas to help get her going.

Designer

The dress from her wedding to Nick was a beautiful and highly traditional Vera Wang design. Unfortunately, we think this alone precludes Vera from being a part of Jessica and Eric’s day.

A huge wedding designer to the stars, Monique Lhullier designed Vanessa Minnillo’s dress which was a fairly simple number with a detailed bodice and pick up skirt.

Having had the upper hand of seeing Vanessa’s dress before selecting her own (coincidence?), we doubt Jessica will pick Monique to design her dress.

Another potential designer is Zac Posen, who did Portia de Rossi’s gorgeous backless ballerina-pink gown with plunge neck. Jessica told People in April that she likes the “romantic feel of a lighter color” and Zac Posen has proven that he can deliver.

Other possibilities include Reem Acra who designed LeAnn Rimes’ dress for her nuptials to Eddie Cibrian (more on that later), and Marchesa who has been worn by Emily Blunt and Nicole Richie (for all 3(!) of her dresses on her wedding day to Joel Madden).

Katy Perry donned an Elie Saab Haute Couture design to marry Russel Brand in what sounds like a storybook wedding in India complete with elephants. We could definitely see Jessica in this dramatic showstopper from the Fall 2011 show.

Earlier this year, Access Hollywood caught up with Jessica to chat about the upcoming royal wedding. It was during this interview  that she said she planned to “outdo” Kate Middleton. Well Jessica, here’s your chance. Perhaps she’ll decide that as pop royalty, she should also get a dress designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen.

Styling

Not the first celeb bride this year to be walking down the aisle for the second time, it’s safe to assume that like Reese and LeAnn, Jessica will move away from traditional options.

Reese chose a delicate blush pink Monique Lhullier A-line gown with fitted bodice while LeAnn oozed sex appeal in her hand-made Reem Acra nude silk chiffon dress with a deep neckline and super-high slit.

For Jessica, we can probably expect something curve hugging in a light or dusty hue with a low neckline. Beyond that, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Heaven On Earth

As it turns out, you can die twice. I know because it’s happened to me. Figuratively speaking of course. And might I say it’s all thanks to Mila Kunis.

So brace yourselves for round one. When Mila stepped onto the red carpet for the 2011 Oscar’s in this Elie Saab dress, I literally hit the floor. For this moment, my world came to a complete stop. They say you should believe in love at first sight and for me, this was the big one. I figured God might as well call me up at that moment because quite frankly, could it get any better? I’d seen it all.

But now the impossible has happened once again. Last night Mila stepped-up her game at the Friends With Benefits premiere in Moscow. This time in another Elie Saab dress. And ya know what, it’s perfect. There is nothing else to say about it. Certainly now I’ve seen it all (but Lord knows I’ve said that before).

First love sure does die hard though.

-Ashley