Rain rain GO AWAY!

After two perfectly glorious spring days, today was absolutely dismal. The air was chilly in the upper 50's and the rain made it even worse- you know that wet, raw kind of day? Well, that was today. But I decided not to let it get me down. I put on one of the most recent "Bouche" originals- a fun skirt in white and kelly green:

As you can see from the pictures, I am also wearing my newest accessory- a bright pink iPod nano. I am addicted to it! Although, after scooting around town with it all day, I discovered an interesting side effect of having all sorts of great music right at my fingertips. Once I realized this, I sent a text to my good friend Brance telling him of my discovery. Here's how our convo went:

Renee: Dangerous side effect to the iPod: singing out loud in public. Also, spontaneous dancing.

Brance: Not to worry. You did that before.

Renee: Not with apparently "silent" music (to strangers around me). Do iPod users just hold it in? Because girlfriend needs to bust a move like Beyonce.

Brance: Hold it in until you reach the front door. Then shake and sang what yo momma gave you.

Renee: This can not be restrained. I guess I'll just have to be that crazy lady.

Brance: Attabouche*

My neighbor saw me shaking my booty on the way to the mailbox. I was immediately embarrassed, but I got over it. Anyway, back to the skirt. Isn't this fabric fun?

It kind of makes me want to "find my way" through it, you know? The skirt is another circle-shape. It's really flattering, not to mention super comfortable, just like the white dress from earlier this week. Since it was a little chilly today, I layered my favorite Ann Taylor denim jacket over my cap-sleeve white scoop-neck tee. My legs were a tad chilly, but my toes were warm enough in my Maurice's brown ballet flats. I finished off the outfit with simple accessories including earrings from Ten Thousand Villages and my baubles ring from ShopKim on Etsy. A pretty simple outfit, perfect for running errands around town.

In addition to a stop at Barnes & Noble and CVS, I also stopped by a local gelato stand for some of the MOST amazing gelato of my life. Some of you may not know it, but started blogging with a humble little blog about ice cream. I sampled ice cream from as many ice cream establishments as I could find in Lancaster. Click here for my original review of Gelato di Babbo. The company is very successful on the wholesale side, but the owner struggles with the success of the retail side of things. A less-than-fabulous location for her shop, combined with difficulties in zoning with the town of Lititz and tons of competition from other previously established shops has made it very hard. It makes me sad because her product is truly outstanding- she's the Ben & Jerry's of gelato. I'm sure that's why she's so successful with the wholesale side of things. But she truly loves the retail side- she can offer flavors that you won't likely see in a grocery store in addition to all the regulars. Flavors like Peanut butter & jelly, coconut, blackberry merlot, chocolate Guinness, to name a few. Today I bought 2 pints of gelato and I have to be honest, it was hard to narrow the selection down. In the end, I got a full pint of pistacchio as well as half a pint each of bananas foster and cannoli. Normally, I despise things that are "banana-flavored." That's because I hate banana flavoring. But her bananas foster gelato isn't made with banana flavoring. It's made with actual bananas. Just like her mango sorbet is made with actual mangoes. And the chocolate Guinness is made with 3 pints of Guinness. And the blackberry Merlot? A full bottle of wine goes into that recipe. There is no "flavoring" in her product, only real, fresh ingredients, most of which are local to Lancaster county. If you're a fan of buying local, Gelato di Babbo will be right up your alley. In addition, she makes custom flavors for any event, although I highly recommend the three I purchased today, especially the pistacchio and the cannoli. There's real ricotta cheese in the cannoli, so the flavor and texture are spot on. It also has crumbled cannoli shell and tiny chocolate chips scattered throughout. "Yum," is all I have to say about it. Anyway, the reason I'm waxing poetic on dessert is because I truly want to see this brand succeed, if only for selfish reasons (I love to eat it). With such an abundance of chemical-laden foods out there, it's refreshing to see someone making something truly fresh and pure. So if you live in the Lancaster area, head out to Gelato di Babbo next weekend and sample some gelato and sorbet. Take a pint (or two) home with you- I promise you will not regret it.

*Phrase "attabouche" copyright Brance Cornelius :-)

Accessories Anonymous

I have been a bit M.I.A. this weekend but it's for good reason. I decided to invest in a fabulous new accessory:

I had to get it in pink, of course. Hard to believe I waited this long to join the 21st century, but I've never been much of a tech geek. I spent the afternoon going through my CD's and downloading them onto the iPod. It was fun, but I'm mostly looking forward to getting some new music. Hopefully I'll be blogging regularly again tomorrow! Have a great night!

First Day of Spring and Film Fashion Found!

I have a couple more "Bouche Originals" to show you all, but when it came time to get my act together and take some pictures, I was faced with a difficult decision.

Option #1: Take out the camera, put on the clothes and snap the photos.
Option #2: Drive to Rita's Italian Ice for the annual free water ice, then sit and eat it.

Based on the fact that this post shows no photos of new Bouche Originals, I think you know which one I went for.

I'm now sitting on the couch, watching "The Devil Wears Prada" and feeling good about my choice. And the movie has reminded me of a website my BFF told me about a while ago. Film Fashion Found is a site dedicated to telling you who designed the amazing clothes in movies such as The Devil Wears Prada, Sex and the City, Twilight, 27 Dresses and many, many others (even including classics like Breakfast at Tiffany's) and showing you how to recreate your favorites looks from those movies. They also offer examples of clothes currently available by the designers featured in the various movies. It's a fabuous way to spend an afternoon, especially if you're looking for a some great fashion inspiration.

On another note- don't you just LOVE the character of Miranda Priestly? I love so much about her- the way she dismisses her staff by saying oh-so-quietly, "That's all" and how she tosses her coats onto the desk when she walks into the office and of course her clothes! But I digress...

When you have a moment, check out the website above and then leave me a comment to tell me what you think about it! And check back soon for pictures of my latest creations. I swear, I'm not going to have to shop at all for spring and summer this year- I've got so many "new" dresses and skirts that (mostly) cost a fraction of what I would have paid in a store and what makes them even better is that they're all one of a kind. I have a lot of fun making them, too. You're all probably sick of looking at the same silhouette over and over again, but when I find something that works for me, I stick with it! Until then, enjoy these gorgeous treasures that are just as fabulous as the pieces seen on Anne Hathaway and Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada or on Sarah Jessica Parker in the Sex and the City Movie (all available via Saks Fifth Avenue):

Carlos Falchi East/West Python Tote, $1,995.00

Alexander McQueen Eagle Sketchy Chiffon Scarf, $475.00

Dior Bonnie Stamped Croc Wedge Sandals, $1,150.00

Chloe Ginkgo Sunglasses, $150-$330

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

I Feel Pretty

Another Bouche original. The sash is literally just a wide grosgrain ribbon. I also got one in red so that when I decide to prance around singing "I Feel Pretty" I have the appropriate attire.

Here's a close-up of the fabric:

I originally wanted a nice white eyelet, but then I found this fabric and I fell in love with the lace and the cool stitching so I got it instead. The fabric is actually from 2 summers ago and I am just now getting around to making something with it. The bummer when working with white fabric is that you absolutely MUST line it. The top has a single layer of liner, but with the skirt I opted to double the lining just to be safe. And if you're wondering about my success, I actually happen to be wearing black undergarments, so there! (Sorry for the overshare.) As for the structure, even though it is a similar silhouette to the grey eyelet skirt, the red dress and the green floral dress, the pattern is actually pretty different from all of them. The red dress was a pleated A-line skirt, and the grey skirt and green dress were both just gathered waistlines. This dress is made with a full circle skirt. Since I LOVE huge, full skirts, I actually cut the waistline of the circle skirt a little bigger than I needed to and then placed subtle pleats in both the front and back of the dress. Because of how circle skirts fall, the pleats are actually barely noticeable. Circle skirts are amazing for dancing and I use them all the time in the costumes I make for dancers at AMT. When a dancer turns in a circle skirt, the fabric literally floats up horizontal to the floor. But the other benefit to a circle skirt is that there isn't any bulky gathering at the waistline. Some people really hate that extra fabric- they feel it makes them look bigger. I personally don't mind it. Anyway, with a circle skirt, there's all the fullness you could hope for, but the waistline is sleek and trim. The best of both worlds!

I'm really happy with this dress because it's light and airy and oh-so-summery. I can wear it with a sash or without and as I already mentioned I have both Tiffany blue (pictured) and red. I took these pictures last night right before I left work for the night. The sun was just starting to go down as the parking lot was filling up for a concert. I wanted to wait and have Ken photograph it because he does such a good job, but in the end I was too impatient and wanted to share this dress with all of you right away! However, I think Vanessa (one of my staff) did a fabulous job as my stand-in photographer. Thanks, V!

So what do you think of my latest creation? Leave a comment!

Project Runway: Season Seven, Episode 9

WIN: Emilio and Seth Aaron
AUF'd: Amy

I know this post is a little bit late, but I went to hear a friend play jazz at a bar downtown last night and was too sleepy to watch the episode when I got home. A day late isn't horrific, right? Anyway, on to the good stuff:

Emilio and Seth Aaron did a spectacular job on both- I couldn't believe their gown was denim and looked that elegant. Loved it all! And I also agreed with the judges other top 2 team choice of Anthony and Maya- they did an impeccable job in their tailoring and construction. Both of the top 2 teams were very ambitious, but successful with their execution. I'm very happy for Seth Aaron and Emilio- they deserved the win, but I was also a tad disappointed for Anthony and Maya- I wish all four of them could win the challenge!

The bottom 2 teams were also good calls on the judges part- there were construction issues with both teams. Once again the ambition was there, but for these two teams, the execution definitely wasn't at the level needed at this point in the competition. I felt Jay did a great job on his pants, but that was about it. Mila's outfit looked like a Mila outfit- nothing unexpected about it. I suppose that's part of why I was so disappointed that Amy went home- she may have made some ugly pieces in the last few weeks, but at least she was stepping outside the box and taking risks.

As for the general structure, I basically hate team challenges. I like to see the designers do their own thing- forced collaboration is always going to create some type of turmoil. I suppose that's why the producers set the episode up that way, but I prefer the individual challenge style.

Dapper Dudes

It's not often I encounter people making bold style choices in my day-to-day life. I live in the heart of a very conservative, provincial area where mullets still abound and relaxed fit denim is the most common choice. So, when I saw these gentlemen, I had to get a picture:

These gentlemen and I were on our way to the Fulton Opera House for the opening night of Noises Off last week. I was in my red dress (this time paired with large turquoise chandelier earrings and my black Kenneth Cole peep toe pumps) and they were also decked out as you can clearly see. I really appreciate people who "dress" for the theatre, or the opera, or a symphony. I believe it's more respectful to the people on stage and it says to the performers, "I am taking the time to make myself presentable for you as a show of gratitude for the hard work you have gone through in preparation for the show/concert I am about to enjoy." At least that's how I see it. I always "dress" for opening night at AMT, even though it's quite possibly the most laid-back, casual type of opening I've ever encountered. Plus, isn't dressing up fun?

The Shoe Dazzle Saga Continues...

Once upon a time in a galaxy far far away, or rather, earlier this month in a small Pennsylvania town, a young, stylish girl happened upon Shoe Dazzle. Her story continued over several days, and readers the world over (according to her blog's hit counter anyway) read the riveting shoe drama. Finally, she posted another much anticipated (she thinks) update.

Ok, so maybe it's not all that riveting, but I did get hits from Ireland, France, Canada, the US, several South American countries and India to name a few. I think that's exciting, but I'm sure just about every blogger in the world gets hits from all over- that's what's so great about these interwebs, right? But I digress... back to my Shoe Dazzle Saga. I'm telling you, these people are good. I have been resolved NOT to buy an unnecessary pair of shoes, no matter how adorable I think they are. Example? Sylvie:

Well, you'd think the stylists over at Shoe Dazzle were actually reading this blog and saying to each other, "How can we get this girl to cave?" (As if they need my business that badly- I'm such a narcissist.) Anyway, in my last update on this continuing story, I mentioned that I was unable to purchase my roommate's shoe selection. Well, not long after I published that post, a Shoe Dazzle email arrived in my inbox offering me 20% off my first shoe purchase. Intrigued, I hopped over to the site and wouldn't you know it- they've added three more shoes to my "Showroom" and one of them is the roommate's shoe! Coincidence? Or conspiracy? Either way, these shoes are hot:

And the saga goes on... I have until the end of the day today to take advantage of the 20% discount. Meanwhile, 2 of the shoes in my showroom have sold out. They were not my top choices, so I'm not sweatin' it or anything, but it sure does add to the pressure, you know? Start taking bets, kids- you'll know soon enough if I cave.