Who's Laughing Now?

Skinny Pants
Boots

Update on Wednesday, June 27, 2012 by April & Black

I was a little cautious when I noticed the presence of leather on the runway. You see, I had these silver faux leather pants I wore when I was about 16. I believe my Mum bought them for me. Mums! They always pick the most embarrassing clothes, don't they? Regardless, I loved them so much I wore them like you would wear jeans - literally everyday. Despite the teasing I got from my friends, I thought I was pretty cool back then. Unfortunately, I stopped wearing them the day I went on a 'date' with 'some dude' I liked. He spent the first 30 minutes laughing at my pants. He didn't get it. So many years later, when this trend started to rear its head onto the runway, as much as I appreciated the look, I never had the confidence to join the movement. Perhaps what discouraged me was the fact that the majority of the 'leather' pants I saw in the shops where shiny. 'How totally revolting', I thought. However, my attraction to all things edgy continued to draw me towards them. So I finally gave in.

I have paired these Alexander Wang black cotton-twill and leather skinny pants with this gorgy Vionnet button-up blouse. To keep on with the 'oh so cool' vibe I would wear this Nicolas Kirkwood ruffle-back, suede platform bootie and this 3.1 Phillip Lim lynus envelope clutch.

Who's laughing now?

April xx

Blown Away By The Queen

Finally a collection that requires the creation of a slideshow! Frankly speaking, we expected Alexander McQueen's Resort 2013 collection to blow us away, and we were most certainly blown away. We want these outfits so badly we're not sure we can wait for them to hit the stores. The pieces we have picked out as our favourites can be classed under tailored menswear or perhaps work wear, if you have a lenient enough boss. And that's exactly what excites us because work wear is supposed to be 'oh so dull'.As much as we lust, we hope we don't see a bandwagon of celebrities in these on the red carpet. Not everyone is Alexa Chung.

High powered women going about their business - YES.

Celebrities on the red carpet - CAUTION.

Wedding Reception Fab!

Pumps
Clutches

Update on Wednesday, June 27, 2012 by April & Black

We all get to that point in life where our friends get married around the same time. As much as we love to celebrate with them, its sometimes a bit of a dilemma trying to figure out what to wear. Especially, when you're known to be 'oh so stylish'. You want to impress but at the same time you do not want to outshine the bride. You want a dress that will turn the heads of the groomsmen AND bridesmaids at the reception, whilst being decent enough for the wedding ceremony. This Emanuel Ungaro sequin embellished, wood-twill dress, worn with Rebecca Minkoff mini minaudiere clutch and Miu Miu pumps, is sure to be a hit! Please note - if you are reading this and live in a scorching hot country like Dubai, ignore this post.

Check out this look on Emanuel Ungaro's pre fall 2011 runway:

   

 

Image: Style.com

Fashion or Foolishness

Oh Man! Where do we start with this. This is Marni Resort 2013 by the way. Hands UP, we actually like this. Like not Love. At the same time, we are quite embarrassed to admit that we like it. We wish someone would tell us what exactly this is supposed to be. Is this a shirt dress worn with capris OR is this a shirt worn with the new definition of culottes? Imagine if this look became ultra popular. You would be walking down Oxford Street in London and you would see these hip girls walking towards you wearing something similar. Would you laugh? Be honest. We think we would laugh. Especially if they were short girls. Yes, that would be really funny.

 

 Image: Style.com

To Blog Or Not To Blog

We almost skipped the second page while looking through Chado Ralph Rucci's Resort 2013 collection, purely because we did not find any pieces that we believed were worth writing about. Luckily, something told us to click on the 'page 2' button and voila we found this interesting dress. We then spent the next ten minutes trying to convince ourselves that it was special enough. The problem with this piece is - we love the top half and wish we could yank it out of the picture. On the other hand, we wouldn't be caught dead in the bottom half. Admittedly, its works because it does not work. Okay, now we're beginning to sound crazy. You be the judge.

Image: Style.com

We LOVE LOVE LOVE Manish Arora!!!

THIS is the post we have been waiting our entire lives to write. Unless you are a fashion industry expert or someone who works in the same building as the 'Devil who wears Prada', it is difficult to know every single fashion designer on earth. However, this is an example of a designer we wish someone had told us about years ago. We simply cannot believe we have been in the dark all this time. Remember the day you discovered your favourite designer or boutique; you thought you would never love another. Or the way you felt when you met that special man or woman; you know the feeling! That's the way we felt when we fell in love with Balmain. Yes, Balmain. We thought we would never come across another brand that we would yearn for so badly. And yet we did!

Oh YES, we are now in a polygamous relationship with Balmain AND Manish Arora. And the way we met Arora , ohhhh the way we met! In the simplest way possible, nothing fancy, nothing over-the-top, nothing expensive. We met at an outlet store in Dubai.

It amazes us how so many women are uninterested in outlet stores. We understand the confusion, so many clothes scattered all over the place. You would think the huge SALE signs would be convincing enough but somehow we seem to be the only people we know who actually get aroused by the sight of an outlet store. And its not only because we can buy past seasons stock for a lot less, but because we discover so many brands we never knew existed. It was while playing the field at this outlet store in Dubai, that we met the ONE. Okayyyy, more like - the other woman. We laid our eyes on two gorgeousssss Manish Arora dresses and bought them on the spot! 

Then, we all lived happily ever after.

So we ask, dear Manish Arora:

Where Have You Been All Our Lives??????

Check out our favourite past and present looks from Manish Arora. LOOK but DO NOT TOUCH! 

As for the two dresses we bought on the day we met......... You didn't think we would give it all away did you?

A lady never tells.

Not today anyway.

 

Our Favs - Sao Paolo Summer 2013

We love the freshness of the designs in the emerging fashion world so of course we had a good look through the collections shown at the recent Sao Paolo fashion week. We literally had to stop to breath when we spotted these three looks. From Brazilian fashion house Amapo, comes this intriguing, out-there dress. This one is for the fashionista who isn't afraid to take risks. We are quite familiar with the captivating Amapo look; who can forget the labels 'funtastic' summer 2012 runway. Thus, this season we had high hopes. Absolutely lived up to our expectations.

Designer Fernanda Yamamoto's collection showcased a colourful mixture of texture, however this beautiful look caught our eyes. This is the way colour should be put together to create a one-of-a-kind  outfit. Serial 'colour-blockers' do take note....

Unless you have been living under a rock, you would know that prints are very much the in-thing. While we are fans, we must admit that some of the clothes we have seen on the streets could easily pass off as sleepwear! For anyone who does not get this trend, check out this look from Brazilian fashion brand, Triton. Convinced?

Images: FFW

So Wrong But Oh So Right

We tried really hard to find something wrong with this 'oh so desperate housewives' look from American designer, Thom Browne's Resort 2013 collection. On first look, you think "this shouldn't work, way too much going on" but then you realise that you can't take your eyes off it.

Known for his signature tailored jackets, we must give credit where credit is due. Once again, Thom Browne creates an exceptional piece of art. Its certainly not easy to find a piece that screams 'powerful quirky offbeat business woman'. This suit ticks all the right boxes.

Images: Style.com

Diane Von Furstenberg Does Bad Ass!

When we think, Diane Von Furstenberg, we think 'the wrap dress' and when we think 'the wrap dress' we think of a more mature woman. We certainly don't think 'bad ass chick'. Thus, we were pleasantly surprised to find this dress in the Resort 2013 collection.

Taking inspiration from 'a journey across the U.S', the rest of the collection featured prints and bright colour combinations.  We are SICK of the colour-blocking trend so went through some of the looks pretty quicky UNTIL we came across this shocking-pink suit. This is the sort of outfit we would wear to work on a Friday (dress-down day). Take off the jacket, and we could hit the trendiest bar in town without having to do a 'quick' change. Perfect time-saver.

Images: Style.com

Resort 2013 - Willow

For the Girly Girls out there, we have chosen this little black dress from Australian designer Willow as our favourite look. This dress is edgy and yet still very feminine. It is so 'April & Black' - very sweet but still portrays a tough demeanor. This is the dress our Mums would love to see us in; and no we don't mean that in a bad way.

Although we aren't turned on by the all-white piece below, we adore these slit-open trousers. Literally cannot wait for these pants to hit the shops as we will certainly be swiping our credit cards.

Images: style.com

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OMGee - Fendi

Okay! So you know we love quirky looks BUT .... we think this may be taking things too far. While the rest of the collection is sane and err nothing to jump off a building about, this certainly caught our attention. Yes we think its prettyyy but also know that if we wore this out on the streets we would get some pretty funny looks. So I guess the question is: Would you ROCK this?

Image: Style.com

Weekend Casual Look

Satchels

Update on Wednesday, June 20, 2012 by April & Black

Yes we know it's only Wednesday but we like to plan ahead. We've been invited to a barbeque on Sunday and both love this outfit. We just have to decide who gets to buy it! The Look: Jason Wu Raylene blouse, Haider Ackermann Serra Trousers, Chloe Marcie Satchel.

See these Haider Ackermann trousers from the Fall 2011 Ready-To-Wear collection. Definitely UP our street.

Image: Style.com

The Celebutante

Sleeveless Tops
Satchels

Update on Tuesday, June 19, 2012 by April & Black

Today's 'celebutante' is styled in a Balmain Embellished wool-blend jacket, Maison Martin Margiela sleeveless top, Stella McCartney Thalis cropped satin-twill pants, Marc Jacobs Thompson bag and Christian Louboutin Roller Girl velvet and leather loafers.

Stunning Balmain jacket from the Fall 2011 Ready-To-Wear collection on the runway:

 Image: Style.com

Resort 2013 - Antonio Marras

From his Resort 2013 collection, designer Antonio Marras reveals this gorgeousss look. We don't like the matching bag; a little too prim and proper for us. All in all, we did pause when we saw this picture out of the bunch so we admit its a good look.

Your thoughts?

Image: Style.com