Wishing you a happy, healthy holiday season from The Habit. Here is a fun link roundup while you’re waiting for guests to arrive and the roast to finish cooking.
Jessica Alba is all about the family these days. Just after releasing her family hit this summer, Spy Kids: All the Time in the World, Jessica gave birth to her second daughter, Haven Garner. But, being a new mom hasn’t stopped her from being out and about! Jessica Alba wore HABITUAL Alice Skinny jeans in Sahara this past Saturday while shopping with her family in Los Angeles. As if two kids aren’t enough, Jessica is starting a new brand called The Honest Company, which will launch in January. The company will help mothers by selling eco-friendly products – from diapers to laundry detergent.
Thanks to our friends at Just Jared.com for posting this first. You can find this wash at Post Blue Jean in Miami, Elements in Dallas, Chloe & Dillon in Seattle or Fred Segal Girl in Santa Monica.
With the holidays upon us, it’s getting kind of late to do holiday shopping online. An inventory problem or Fedex snafu might spell disaster. Instead, get out this weekend and support your local boutiques! If you can, find a walkable shopping neighborhood near you. That way you can burn off the cupcakes you ate at the company holiday party and avoid the parking nightmare at the mall. Here’s a shopping guide for one of our favorite areas of LA – Silverlake, Echo Park, and Highland Park:
CLOVER has a really friendly staff and a fun selection of gifts and coffee table books for all ages, along with women’s clothing and denim.
LAKE is a comfortable, approachable boutique with accessories, gifts, apothecary products and women’s clothing, generally made by small manufacturers. It’s right next to the Silver Lake Reservoir and perfect for a stroll.
After you’re finished at LAKE, head next door to LAMILL Coffee Boutique. The owners are obsessed with coffee, and serve only on the finest beans and the latest brewing techniques. The iced coffee is the best in the city. You can also enjoy a small but excellent menu of snacks and lunch items from chef Michael Cimarusti in a hip, modern dining area.
For the man in your life, swing by GLORY, a great store with a wide selection of jeans, motorcycle gear, vintage tees, and boots. Some really cool women’s apparel, too.
If that’s too far, there are tons of other walking friendly shopping spots in LA, including Montana Ave. in Santa Monica, Larchmont Village, Abbot Kinney in Venice, 3rd Street in West Hollywood, and Old Town Pasadena. What’s your favorite area?
It’s back to the 1930’s for Burberry’s Pre-fall (and pre-war) 2012 Collection. With updated tweed fabrics and reserved details, the king of coats is toning down last season’s collection for an English country feel. Some even think designer Christopher Bailey is trying to grab the attention of a certain member of the British royal family; the puffy sleeve dresses, slim waists, and luxe, form fitting jackets seem tailor-made for the new Duchess.
For all the attention given to the roaring 20’s recently – including Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris and HBO’s Boardwalk Empire – it’s nice to see the equally fashionable 1930’s decade getting a bit of attention. We particular love the dark and muted colors – sage, bracken, lavender, charcoal, and pewter.
Gentleman ARTHUR owners Samuel Wagner and Evrim Nathanael Eksi “wanted to create a project that had the mental complexity of artwork while sharing the accessibility of popular culture.” That’s definitely evident in their collection of handmade wood block ties, including The Hobo, inspired by Jack Kerouac’s adventures in On the Road and The Emma Beryl, inspired by Sam’s grandmother’s classic quilting patterns.
While they don’t consider themselves a fashion line, the duo’s slim cut ties are certainly fashionable, and at a great pricepoint too. Each tie is made from 100% cotton or felt and sells online for $75. Because of the design process, each piece is one of a kind – the wood block prints yield imperfect patterns, certain styles have unfinished edges, and some are even sewn with a slight curve in the seam. In their own words, “The bulky silk tie is dead, and the well-dressed man is now the rebel.”
Karl Lagerfeld has taken a risk in bringing together Paris and Bombay for the new Chanel Pre-Fall 2012 collection, but it pays off marvelously. Classic Chanel silhouettes meet Indian styling, Parisian fabrics meet intricate Indian detailing, trademark Chanel black and white softens into ebony and ivory. Even the mock dinner table evokes the right mood, with French candelabras alongside bowls of fruit and florals from an Indian palatial feast. That India is most often associated with Britain makes the collection suprising and more modern than ever. It’s hard to believe that Lagerfeld has never been to India.
We’ve also picked up on the Indian influence with new colors for our coated denim, Goa, Tea Leaf, and Taj Mahal, which will be available in January.
Along with ice-skating, extravagant window displays are part of the holiday tradition in New York City, with millions of tourists and locals passing by the big department stores every year (turns out out it might actually be worthwhile – a new study suggests that the best displays do in fact attract shoppers). If you’ll be in New York for the holidays, here’s our rundown of the top window displays:
Barney’s is betting big on its Gaga’s Workshop concept, with a fantasy Lady Gaga Boudoir, Gaga’s Cave of Crystals, and an entranceway that feels like you are walking into a deck of cards.
Macy’s Herald Square has dedicated their windows to the Make-A-Wish foundation, merging the fantastic with the futuristic in a white and navy blue series of windows. On-lookers can also design ther own holiday ornament and take it home on their mobile phone.
Saks is accompanying its windows with a holiday light show projection inspired by the book “Who Makes the Snow,” and will feature dresses by designers Stella McCartney, Marchesa and Alexander McQueen.
Bloomingdale’s is revisting its own holiday shopping bags from seasons past as inspiration for this year’s designs.
But perhaps our favorite is Bergdorf Goodman’s “Carnival of the Animals” theme. Windows include a brass metalwork menagerie, a sparkling undersea world of fish made with rhinestones and sequins, and a white upholstered Arctic scene called “Breaking the Ice”.
The Victorian period falls under Queen Victoria’s reign in England, from 1837 to 1901, when fashion was characterized by big bell-shaped sleeved dresses with lots of lace and detailing, corsets, large hats and bonnets, and the occasional parasol. Now obviously we can’t walk around nowadays with enormous dresses and feather hats, but that doesn’t mean we can’t reinterpret the fashion of the day. To get a Neo-Victorian look, start with a flare pant in a solid, neutral color. Here we have the HABITUAL Harlow Flare in Grey, and pair it with a draping blouse to evoke the movement and continuity of a dress. Add some English flair with an oxford high heel, and bring in Victorian era detailing and color with vintage jewelry or earrings. We caution against taking it any more literal than that, unless it’s Halloween, or you happen to be Lady Gaga.
Pants: HABITUAL Harlow Flare in Grey
Earrings: 1928 Red Cranberry Vintage Drop Earrings
Top: Alexander McQueen Silk Pussy-bow Blouse
Belt: Barney’s Co-op Tapered Equestrian Belt
Shoes: Yves Saint Laurent Tribute Lace-up Bootie (left), ALDO ‘Horvath’ Oxford Wedge
