Weekend DIY: Colorblock Toms.

Posted on by Nicole Cohen
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Remember my DIY splatter paint Toms from last year, HERE? Yea, those were cool. I wore them so much that they all but fell apart. I tried to wear them last week and noticed the sole of one shoe was missing. Oh well, I needed a new pair. Hmmm…. what should I do to them? I didnt want to do the same thing over again, and wearing Toms is basically like wearing slippers around the city. I hit up Urban Outfitters and picked up a pair of natural color canvas HERE. I thought that would work better than white, which could be a little harsh.

I always say the best DIYs are the easiest. Its when you go beyond your skill set that you get hokey looking stuff that you would never actually buy. This is why I don’t upholster chairs, or wallpaper my own walls. It’s not like I’m Little Green Notebook, or anything. Anyway, using whatever I had in my apartment, scotch tape instead of blue tape, q-tips instead of paint brushes, I used the tape to create two asymmetrical color block shoes. This part is important: I used the Sharpie Paint Pen to trace a super straight line on the shoe. If I relied on the tape to do the job, the paint would definitely have bled all over the place.

Then I just painted in the side I wanted to keep black and viola! Done. Dry in ten minutes. Im really happy with them. Cute, goes with everything, basic with a twist!

Have a great weekend!

Lipstick Wars: High End Vs. Drug Store.

Posted on by Nicole Cohen
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I’m not a beauty product fiend. Not by a long shot, but I like a strong lip color because I dont tend to wear too much eye makeup (I hate how my eyelids look with eyeshadow. Anyone else feel this, or is it just me?) so when I want to look like I actually tried, I put on a red, hot pink or even coral or orange lip. I would say I normally buy 1 or 2 lipsticks A YEAR, and its usually after I get my makeup done and they use a new color on me and then I want to go buy it. That’s easy for me, because I already know it will look good! It’s not that I’m so snobby that I never bought a drug store lipstick, its just that I never thought about it, because I’m not a product person, and just went with recommendations. Above you see a few of my favorite lipsticks (pretty much all of them) and the absolute decimation they endured at the hands of my children. Keep them UP HIGH! You’ll say. Yea, I do. Thanks for the tip. The monkeys CLIMB.( I instagrammed a picture way back when of what they did with it. Oh god. And no, I wasnt home.) This was a few months ago and I was still using them anyway. Wrapping the base in a tissue so I wouldnt get lipstick on my hand by accident and then all over my face later on, and then just trying to get a nice smear out of it. ENOUGH! Yesterday I went to Duane Reed and bought 6 new lipsticks. (One I forgot to put in the picture). First I was like, lemme try this… Then I noticed they were having a sale, so I went crazy. At the drug store, you cant smear the lipstick on your hand as a tester and there’s obviously no salesperson to help you choose so its more of a guessing game. I tried to cover all my color bases: Good reds, orange, nude, dark 90′s style berry and a fuchsia. The reds were easy enough, but I could find no good match for my YSL fuchsia which is really magical. That’s the one of the left in case you are wondering. Destroyed.

Now, are the  $25- $40 lipsticks really better than the $5- $8 lipsticks? It depends. I bought two brands, Revlon and Milani. The Milani aren’t great. The color doesnt match the color in the stick, which is the biggest problem with it. The red is too dark and the sangria is too purple and I think it may even have a shimmer to it. Which is bad. I surely do not want purple sparkly lips. It also has a taste. However, the Revlon stuff is AWESOME. That Orange Flip color is part of their “Moon Drop Lipstick” in a cream finish, and its pretty great. It goes on really smooth and thin. Ever put on a Mac lipstick or any high end lipstick? It goes on like paint and then you have to de-apply some so you dont look like a clown. The Revlons are the opposite. They go on really thin and then you can add another layer to make it darker. Maybe that’s the real difference in quality? The thickness? And the way they last? Aside from packaging, that is. Also not pictured is a Revlon Super Lustrous Plumalicious. I love that one too. It’s kind of like that 90′s berry brown color that Kim K was wearing at the Met Ball. It’s pretty fab. It goes on thin, like I said, so you could even wear these bold colors during the day and not look semi-nuts. The nude was not as good as my old Nars. But it’ll do.

I get that a lot of women like to see a nice label in their makeup drawer. It does feel good to pull out a sexily packaged lipstick when you are trying to get yourself out of your sweatpants and semi presentable. It helps. The barrier for entry is not THAT high, so many people could afford to spend a little more one or two times a year to get a better product, or a product that makes them feel better, so why not? I get it, but are they really better? My conclusion: for really nuanced color, I would say the high ends are better. I could not find a decent pink. For thicker, more long lasting color: the high ends. But for a good red or bright orange, I think the cheapies are great. And  the Orange Flip, HERE and the Plumalicious HERE are really good colors, by all standards. Those I really recommend. Go get em. Also really recommend YSL Rouge Pur Couture 7, Le Fuschia, HERE and Nars, Belle De Jour HERE. Oh, and I dont wear lip gloss. Period.

What are some of your favorite colors? Do you go for the brand name stuff or drug store stuff, or both? Any recommendations for us?

Mother’s Day Gifts, Gifts for Yo Momma.

Posted on by Nicole Cohen
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Now, do I really think I know what your mom is going to like? No, I have no clue. I don’t even know what MY mom would like. I do know what I like, and what you might like, so we can start with that. I came up with an arty type of theme for this one. And we can start on the left hand column because that’s the gift I’m most confident in. The first four pictures are actually SCARVES! Beautiful, beautiful scarves. Moms love scarves. These are a little hip, but not too hip because once you twist it around your neck its not crazy looking, its just a soft beautiful pattern. OR, your mom could frame these. Cause they are so so pretty. Thats my #1 choice for mom.

Temps De Revese scarves: HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE. The havana print is probably my favorite, its $295.

Next we have a huge beach towel from the Lichtenstein collab with Barney’s. Its only available in the store, but I think its awesome.

Paint Brush Tray

Givenchy bracelet. Is your mom a badass? Get her this. HERE.

Kelly Wearstler Mother of pearl clutch: (comes in black and white too), every mom can rock a beautiful clutch. HERE.

1″ lucite portraits- Photographer Shirley Serure now offers photos already printed into 1″ lucite blocks. Every grandma wants pictures of their grandchildren! HERE.

Orange leather passport holder, yea, its pretty so why not. Throw in 2 tickets to Paris and you’d be the ultimate daughter or son. HERE.

Charlotte Olymia’s lucite clutches are all the rage, but this one is a little bit funny actually, and Im in full support of it. All women can wear crazy accessories. That’s a fact. HERE.

A vintage polaroid Camera. These things were rescued from the dumpster by the Impossible Project when polaroid film went out of production. Its back in production now, but these vintage polaroids are the COOLEST. I know your mom probably complains about how you never print her any pictures. Just email them to her. WELL, now she can have instant gratification and print em on the spot. Also, she probably already knows how to work this thing. I got one one year for Mother’s Day from the hub, and it was really an awesome gift. HERE.

This white circle clutch – the handle is removable- by Maison Martin Margiela is radness incarnate. Simple and bold. I might buy it for myself. HERE.

Gorgeous book, Textiles:The Art of Mankind by Mary Shoeser HERE

These Eddie Borgo tinsel earrings are really fun. I want. HERE.

And last, a floral chair by  artist Phillip Estlund for Gray Area, expensive, but on theme and awesome. HERE. 

 

Did I just put together a list of things your mom might hate? Yes? Ok, go with the scarf!

The Train Hoppers.

Posted on by Nicole Cohen
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In 2002 At 17 years old, Mike Brodie gathered a few of his belongings and left home announced. He hopped a train thinking he was heading to visit a friend in Alabama, but the train went to Jacksonville, Florida instead. He rode the same train home, but within days he was back on the road.  From 2004-2009 Brodie hopped trains, traveled through 46 states and logged 50,000 miles. Traveling, wandering, walking, train hopping, and documenting with a Polaroid Camera he found behind a carseat. He began posting his photos online as a way keep in touch with his widespread vagabond friends, and was soon being called The Polaroid Kidd. He eventually switched to 35 mm film, and 1980s era camera. In 2008 Brodie’s work was submitted for the Baum Award for An Emerging American Photographer. He won. Over the years he has amassed one of the most impressive collections of American travel photography, despite the fact that he has no formal training and doesn’t even self-identify as a photographer. In fact, he has stopped making photos and is working as a mechanic.  His book, A Period of Juvienille Prosperity was just released in March.  “I know almost everyone I shoot,” Brodie says, “Three of the women in the book are ex-girlfriends and a couple of the guys … are best friends.”

I find the photos captivating, stunning, sad, happy, exciting, quiet and American all at the same time. I love the painterly quality to them, the energy, the light. They look like they belong to another era. And they do.

A Period of Juvenile Prosperity is available online HERE. Check out Mike Brodie’s work HERE.

Gotham Girl.

Posted on by Nicole Cohen
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In a land far away, and a long time ago, there lived a girl named CeCe Sutton in the city called Gotham. She awoke one day heavy with ennui, “God I wish I could be free!” She thought as she closed her computer for the day.

CeCe slumped low in her seat, on the way home from Corporate. “How I need to shake this last case! A highball might do it. But then again, maybe not.”

She hopped out of her seat at the 42nd street stop – “The Witch! The Witch of the Garment District will know what to do!”

She walked up the stairs, four stories to the top, to a sky lit room filled with paints, strewn all over the floor. Canvas rolls lined the walls, and the windows agape, blew away stale air.

“Shed your business casual at the door!” The witch called from the back. “And I will make magic of your body, mind and soul. Empower you. I’ll wash the dust of the city off your face. My brush will transform you, dear CeCe.”

CeCe stepped out of shadows, and the witch held her hand. “Dont be scared. My paint will release your secret-self. The self you think you are when you are alone in your thoughts. You might not even know who that is yet, but you’ll see!”

BAM!!WHAM! KAPOW! As the paint hit Cece’s skin, smoke filled the air, there was blinding white light, and then darkness.

And out of the darkness, a Phoenix arose.

“How do you feel CeCe?”the Witch of The District asked. ”I am GOTHAM GIRL. Priestess of Passion. Empowerer of Empires. Muse to the mighty. The creative fire burns inside of me. Taxis will flock to my feet as I approach curbs. Restaurants will hold tables in my honor. Subway crowds will split as I rescue one Gothamite at a time from the doldrums of their life, one blog post at a time.”

“Hahaha, little one! Getting ahead of your self now aren’t we? My dear, the war paint wears off, the transcendence will fade. But you can always come back for more paint, and hey, maybe I would like a partner! Together we will bring art and inspiration to all!”

To be continued…

The inspiration behind this post: If you’ve been reading, you can trace my line of thought and see how I put together this idea. Post A + Post B + Post C = Post D. Courtney is beautiful, plus she’s a pretty awesome photographer in her own right, so she was an ideal buddy for this project! As we were editing down the photos last night, we came up with the idea of Gotham Girl. I really do believe in the transformative power of fashion, and now I totally understand the concept of war paint. Not to mention that there are studies that show that certain postures- a double fist pumped YEA! Hands on the hips, chin in the air- just assuming these postures of dominance for 2 minutes will literally boost testosterone levels and build confidence. These poses will make you FEEL more powerful, even if you are just faking it. (Read about that HERE) It’s no wonder then that by the end of the photo shoot Courtney was giving me full on Helmut Newton meets Spiderman. We loved working together, and had a blast! I hope you like the post, it was ridiculously fun and empowering for both of us! Head to Gotham Girl (AKA Courtney’s) blog for her side of the story HERE! Gotham Girl is wearing Alexander Wang Shoes HERE, and a Lenny Niemeyer Suit HERE.