STYLE: October Fashion Editorial - Black Metal Chic

 I absolutely LOVE this time of year! The trees are gorgeous with their fiery leaves, the air is a little more crisp, and there's a mischievous sense of anticipation with Halloween slowly creeping upon us. The entire month of October provides plenty of opportunity for us to transform and becoming someone (or something) else, all in the name of being festive. There is something fearless and daring about the way people dress for Halloween; some like to be super sexy, others like to be humorous, and some like to be terrifying.  Why can't we take the same risks that we do during the Halloween season, all year around but on a much less extreme basis?  Local designer, print maker and crafty queen Adrienne Rozzi's line, Poison Apple Printshop, is a prime example of that type of risk.  Highly influenced by the Norwegian death metal scene, she takes simple pieces and transforms them into wickedly amazing metal-chic outfits.  Her patchwork and screen printing provoke taboo and strange ideas that haunt you far after you've witnessed her clothing. We took the risk of painting the models faces death-metal style and shot in broad daylight into dusk at the beautiful Allegheny Cemetery. A lesson to be learned from Ms. Rozzi: be bold and daring, and never be afraid to take a risk every now and then.                     Happy Halloween!

Find Poison Apple Printshop on Etsy!!!!

A very special Thank You and Happy Birthday to my wonderful friend 

and photographer Robert Hester!!!

STYLE: ULTRAVIOLET Fashion Show Features Top PGH Designers

In the height of Pittsburgh's 3rd Annual Fashion Week, came Keith Bloom and Donovan Wilburn's ULTRAVIOLET fashion show.  Both experts in fashion and equally creative, the duo set to to produce the most professional, high-end fashion show the city has ever seen - and boy did they live up to it! Set at the new Cavo Lounge in the Strip District, Ultraviolet featured some of Pittsburgh's newest, hottest upcoming clothing lines such as Highway Robbery, Clothes Minded, Chloe Chic Dresses, Boutique la Passarelle, Roberta Weissburg Leathers, Timebomb, Streetheart, and of course the much anticipated line by Keith Bloom - In Bloom.
     Each one of the collections was far from what you would expect from the ordinary Pittsburgh fashion show - there were no fanatical,  re-made jerseys, no black and gold t-shirt dresses or bejeweled team hats, this was a sophisticated and very polished show.  Ultraviolet opened up with darling dresses by Chloe Chic making a slight wink towards retro shapes, Peter Pan collars and feminine allure.  Clothes Minded was refreshing in a sense that it showed a large amount of men's fashion - beautiful boys in oversized t-shirts with intricate shredding and day-glo splattering paired with good ol' blue jeans and cowboy boots - very urban cowboy!  The always classy Boutique la Passarelle oozed modern femininity with hi-lo cut sweaters, a beautiful tweed dress suit, lots of silky textures and plenty of ruffles and floral prints.  Finally, In Bloom by Keith Bloom was an amazing collection that dripped with sexuality and class at the same time - long, sleek lines fit perfectly for the body, sophisticated, clean prints and patters, and an Egyptian-style dress that I just can't stop thinking about!  Bloom and Wilburn both were in great spirits before, during, and after the show, there are the definition the type of team that makes for a great fashion house.  I'm excited to see what they have in store for the future!

Cavo Runway

Chloe Chic Dresses -

Clothes Minded

StreetHeart

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Timebomb

Boutique la Passarelle

Highway Robbery

Roberta Weissburg

In Bloom - A Keith Bloom Collection

Back to School for Grown Ups - 6 Ways to Have A Fresh Fall Start

Back to School for Grown Ups

Fall has a magical way of allowing us a fresh start, to re-boost our energy, and shake off the summer laziness.  This probably comes from the feeling we got as kids during the back-to-school time of the year when the anticipation of new teachers, new friends and a new "year," provided a novel and comforting feeling.  Although the days of recess, sitting at squeaky desks and note taking are over, we adults can still celebrate our own "new year" with little back-to-school styled upgrades and changes to sharpen our minds and bodies for the months to come.  Here are six A-plus ways to restore that old back-to-school feeling!  Class is in session!

1 - Organize and Update Your Supplies

Source: College Lifestyles

Updating and organizing your supplies will help create an easier more stress-free environment.  It will prevent distractions when you're trying to focus and Get organized by storing loose papers, files, mail, or any other paper work you may have cluttering your space, into file boxes or some other type of storage space. Create and have little things that better manage your time, create less clutter, and are easy to locate.    

2- Better Your Friendships 

Pinterest

Having friends will always be cool. But in our busy lives it’s easy to go weeks or even months without seeing our closest friends; it’s not like in school when we were walking the hallways and eating lunch with them every day.  So now, focus on preserving the friendships you do have and making them stronger.  Work out together, make it a point to actually have lunch twice a month, get together and make crafts, or just enjoy the fall weather by going on walks together.  Friends are important because they remind us of our truest selves.  

3 - Find a Favorite Subject 

Try to make the time to learn something new. Remember when you wanted to learn French? Or wanted to learn how to sew? Maybe you want to dive into a something that interests you at work?  Make a little bit of time out of your day or week to focus on a new subject that you want to learn more about. Expanding your knowledge will help you to set new goals and gain self-confidence.  It can be anything from reading a book on the subject to taking a class. By this time next year, you will have learned a new talent or skill that you never thought you'd know! Here are some ideas to get your creative juices flowing: Cooking classes, glass blowing, guitar lessons, DIY projects 

 4 - Take Lunch 

Taking your lunch to work is not only healthier for you but it could also save you tons of money.  Lunch no longer has to consist of a boring bologna sandwich, a cheese stick and a juice box, instead make healthy and delicious versions of lunches that you enjoy eating, so that you can look forward to it the way you did in 4^th period.  Use whole grain bread instead of white for sandwiches, take last night’s sautéed chicken and toss it into a salad of greens and cherry tomatoes, have seasonal fruit as dessert. Here are some great ideas for grown-up brown bag lunches. Don’t forget to pack it with love!

5 - Have Recess 

Source:supercoolpets

 Just because the days of hide-and-go-seek, tag, and Red Rover are over, doesn’t mean that we still can’t have a blast doing physical activities.  The Fall weather is a great time to go rollerblading, rock climbing, running, or take the dog for a hike through the foliage.  Take a bikram yoga class (hot yoga) when it starts to get chilly outside, or go for a nice long bike ride.  Taking an hour or two out of your day or least a couple times a week, to dedicate to a fun outdoor activity will make you feel more alive and in tune with your body. 

6 - Be Best Dressed

Source: Pinterest

 Shopping for that first day of school outfit was key as to what kind of “vibes” you wanted to put out for the year. This Fall, update your look whether it’s a new haircut, a new shade of lipstick, or a new suit to wear to the office.  Dress how you want to be perceived and fine tune your closet accordingly. This means, getting rid of anything in your closet that you don't wear at  all or is completely out of your age group (that means you printed baby doll tops and whiskered dark denim jeans). If there is a new look you’d like to test;  right now is the time to try new things and enhance the person you are!