The Alexander Report

Shunned for its conservative connotations, the tie tack is back. Young men are sporting that little gold ring or pin on their ties and are making a strong fashion statement – we are hip, cool, and funky but no punk collagists.

Extreme fashion?

Not really. If your young man is sporting a new look, be glad. He is finally using a tie and a tie tack! After snubbing the tie and its perennial partner, guys are showing off a different kind of cool – real cool.

This hip fashion evokes images of young men in crew cut, slack and spiffy ties, and driving their Dad’s Oldsmobile. Grandmas will love this “reincarnation” of the 50s when life was less hectic and uncomplicated, but with a big difference.

Moms, wives, and girlfriends should be glad their guys are going for the tie instead of the hosiery that’s making France’s leading hosiery makers busy. So they shouldn’t be hollering and pulling their hair if their guy is bringing home lots of dirty finds from the trash bins for his punk collage.

Your ties, your taste

But fashion is a fickle thing. For women, the X Frocks for spring 2008 is making titanic splashes on the fashion pages. In contrast, the return of the tie tack did not make a noisy comeback. It’s not the tie tack really, but the guy who wears this and how he wears his ties. The fashion flock is gearing towards the bohemian look with urban polish. (more…)

The good news is that black is huge for autumn and winter 2007. Black on black is the big look now and probably would be in the following decades. Has black ever been out?

Here are my suggestions.

Get the backbone of your wardrobe which you can mix and match throughout the season.

1. A turtleneck top which you can wear with just about anything — from jeans to a glamorous evening skirt. That is a timeless classic which you can wear in the years to come with the latest trends of each new year. If you look good in black, go for black. If not, since this is worn close to your face, pick a color that you actually look good in.

2. Get yourself a slightly flared skirt that ends just above the knee. That’s this season’s favoured length for dresses and skirts which happens to be flattering on most women. If you have a colored top, then go for a black skirt. If your top is black, be adventurous and try a plaid skirt to liven things up a bit.

3. Opaque stockings. The go with skirt suits, dresses and your skirts and are seen everywhere on the fall / winter runways. (more…)

Lingerie style changes just as fashion changes. So, each year there are some major trends in what to wear under the clothes. 2008 trends include several models. The baby doll is still in style for 2008 and the corsets are very hot. The key word for 2008′s lingerie is romance and imagination. Nothing is out of fashion this year as long as it is in the right combination. Remember that what you wear underneath the clothes is also important, maybe even more important that the clothes per se. the sculptured underwear is also a powerful come back in 2008.

These items are actually sculpted after the female anatomy, so don’t miss a lingerie sculpture, because it is a real piece of art in 2008. Panty hoses are in, and these may be of the daftest colors. The more colorful the panty hoses the better. For panties: G strings are not really stylish anymore, so other styles are appreciated: think bikinis, or why not even boy shorts- which may be really sexy if the cut is more daring.

The romantic lingerie will be highly fashionable and some sexy lingerie will be in too. Consequently, flowers will be dominant and laces will rule. The trendiest colors will be several and these are to support the romance and imagination that is meant to represent the lingerie fashion for the year 2008. The black will be always in fashion, nothing could be more romantic and sexy at the same time than some silk lingerie in black. Just the same, white keeps a hot spot, as white lingerie will never go out of style. Red is for the daring romantics, while pink is for a cozy day. Other colors can occur: purple, yellow, and even green. Who said that these cannot be used as lingerie colors? The code for colors in 2008 will be no limits. So, besides the romantic and sexy colors, other unusual colors will also be advertised. (more…)

The trend for jewelry this autumn and winter are simple, attractive necklaces with large vibrant pendants. Necklaces may have many different layered strands of decorated silver and gold chains, or freshwater cultured pearls in unusual shapes and sizes. Exquisite multi-colored semi-precious gemstones adorn glitzy bangles and metal cuff bracelets. Silver hoop earrings of different sizes, faceted briolette gemstones as well as layered dangling earrings are quite fashionable.

Colorful pendants adorn necklaces beaded with tiny glass beads and semi-precious gemstones. Massive lightweight beads sport eye catching necklaces. Black onyx strung along with silver is trendy this year as is small mirrored glass and bulky colorful acrylic beads. Gold and silver chains embellish charms, stones, and even wire wrapped pearls. Strands of cultured freshwater pearls are seen in different shapes, sizes and colors possibly braided or twisted for a dramatic look. Vintage glass beads may be found along side of wood beads. Wood chains are decorated with brass and glass crystals. Layered similar and mismatched beaded strands and unusual necklaces worn together create colorful look this season.

The layered look for earrings is hot this season with unusual smaller shapes on top of larger pieces of silver, copper, or gold. Faceted briolette gemstones dangle from sterling silver wire. Charms may suspend from chains, and the antique look is always popular during the fall and winter months. Teardrop stones are seen in every size and color with clusters of beautiful tiny seed beads. Gold or silver earrings may have an inlay of turquoise or mother of pearl. Hammered silver hoop earrings of all sizes may have cultured freshwater pearls dangling in the center. (more…)

As the sweltering heat of Florida’s summers begins to descend, now is the time to start packing up the halters and tanks and make way for fall fashion! Designers have been busy creating their effortless styles and chic new pieces for this fall. And for fall’s 2007 debut one could say that this is going to be a very diverse collection of fashion. So clean out your closets and make room for coats, batwing sweaters, and pretty purple boots to update your fall wardrobe!

Fall’s Color Palette

Thigh high purple boots sashayed down the runway at Mercedes Fashion week, giving spectators a hint at what to expect in the color forecast for this fall. Although, most designers packed in a lot of black into their wardrobes, some designers opted for various shades of gray, while others chose to enhance the color palette with deep, bold colors. While black is very classic and

Dresses Galore

Typically each fall the pant or jean makes a grand entrance on the runway, (more…)