80 | Fashion Pulse Daily

80

June 27, 2010

Give it Some Personality: The Classic LBD

by

[I apologize for the incredible paleness of my legs in these pics!]

In the world of fashion, black is always a safe, chic choice. I easily have eight lbds that I wear on a regular basis,  with brands ranging from Target to J.Crew and Calvin Klein to Norma Kamali with styles ranging from boatneck to strapless, empire to full-skirted numbers. The one thing that always remains the same across all of these styles? The ability to include a ‘stunner’ – a terrific accessory- be it footwear, earrings, necklaces, or bracelets, that give your lbd a tremendous amount of personality and individual style. Continue reading…

June 17, 2010

Footwear Designer Ce Ce Chin Dishes on Her Latest Collection, Shoe Trends, and More

by

We recently attended the five year anniversary of shoe brand 80%20 and met its charming founder, Ce Ce Chin, who answered our questions about the coveted collection and the future of the brand. Enjoy, and we’re sure you’ll fall in love with Ce Ce Chin and 80%20 — just like we did!

Fashion Pulse Daily: There’s a lot of mesh found in the current 80%20 footwear collection; what inspired this look?

Ce Ce Chin: Mesh swimwear-bathing suits and cover ups- from the 1980s.  I chose a mesh that has a sporty feeling.

FPD: I think my favorite from the collection is the Molly Shoe (pictured above); can you tell me a bit about the genesis of this style, and how you plan to evolve it, season to season?

CCC: We had such success with the hidden wedge as a boot, and the challenge was to design a version for the summer.  The Molly totally works because it has the the contrast of the paper bag effect around the ankle and the open toe.  I’m visualizing the next generation on a platform and with woven straps.

FPD: 80%20 vs Ce Ce Chin Collection- can the same girl wear both?

CCC: Yes, 80%20 is what we’re wearing all day long, while we run about, do what we need to do and look effortlessly chic while doing do.  Ce Ce Chin is a collection of evening shoes with a lot of downtown romance- think of Rapunzel of the Lower East Side.

FPD: The concept behind 80%20 came from your observation that we tend to wear our favorite 20% of our wardrobe 80% of the time’ — what is currently your favorite 20% that you’ve been wearing non-stop?

CCC: The Molly Olive- our runaway best seller this season.  I can wear these with baggy pants or skinny jeans or short shorts.  These shoes are casual and sophisticated at the same time.

FPD: What do you see as next big trend in footwear?

CCC: Preppy chic- loafers, clogs, Weejuns, kilted details.

FPD: Would you consider doing a line for a big retailer, like Target or H&M?

CCC: I would love to do this!

FPD: Besides footwear, what other type of design might you be interested to try?

CCC: I’d love to design interiors.  I’m always working on my apartment.

FPD: Tell me a bit about the blog; I love that you have a variety of posts and tell it like it is (The Carrie Diaries Post) — what made you want to have a blog as part of the site?

CCC: I see the blog as the beginning on an ongoing dialogue with our customer. It’s really about building community.  I’m sharing details about the 80%20 lifestyle- what’s inspiring, what’s annoying, what’s clever, what’s funny and so forth.  By doing this, I’m inviting our customers to interact and share their thoughts with us.

-Julia DiNardo


June 11, 2010

What FPD Has Been Up to Lately

by

We’ve been making the rounds on about a million events this week, and thought we’d share what we’ve been seeing, experiencing, and loving:

We checked out Revolution in Cut, the new shampoos and styling products  by famed stylist Ric Pipino that works with your hair cut, not hair type. The options? crop, layered bob, bob, short layers, long layers, blunt.

We celebrated the five year anniversary of Ce Ce Chin’s footwear line, 80%20 at Panda NYC

Fashion Pulse Daily finds a Fifth Avenue-worthy bag for under $40

Speaking of Fifth Avenue, we found out about the new Tiffany & Co iPhone app, The Engagement Ring Finder, which let’s you play around and compile different variations (shape, setting, metal or design) for a Tiffany engagement ring, including a touch screen accurate ring sizer feature (soo cool-just hold up one of your rings to the screen) and karat size options. It launches Monday — check it out and share it with your social network! Users can easily make an appointment for a diamond consultation via phone or e-mail (you can’t purchase via the app).

The kick off party for the launch of TopGuest.com at The Standard Hotel in the Meatpacking District,  a new members only site that uses social media to geo-check in and earn points and discounts at luxe travel destinations.

We oohed and awed over Kara Ross‘ opulent new collection of jewelry and handbags, complete with water snakeskin reclaimed antlers, stingray, and more.

Give and Take Tees, the tee line that works with, and give a hefty percentage of its sales to charities, had a pop up shop party complete with s’mores, juice, and a tee pee tee display to fit into its camp-themed event at Cockpit USA in the Village.