Trend Report: Bow Tie Blouses

 

This season’s best blouse comes with its very own built-in accessory: a flouncy, feminine bow tie. Hopping on the hugely popular gender-bending boyfriend-dressing trend in women’s fashion, the bow tie blouse borrows a classically masculine accessory and infuses it with a distinctly feminine appeal.

The bow tie blouse or ascot blouse puts a fancy twist on the classic button-up and offers a fresh alternative to the autumn or spring.

How To Wear a Bow Tie Blouse

Although the bow tie blouse is super hot and fresh right now, you may recall that many a granny have donned this particular garment. You can definitely find some fabulous vintage or thrift bow tie blouses, but take care to avoid looking matronly by choosing bow tie tops in high quality fabrics and body-skimming and/or tucked-in styles. Always wear a bow tie blouse with something tailored to show off your curves – there’s nothing matronly about that!

Get all tied up in bow ties! Find out how to make your mom’s bow tie blouse look smokin’ hot.

Tunic Style

We’re not going to tell you tunics are new. We’re not even going to slap tunics with an avant-garde label or tie them up with an of-the-moment ribbon. Tunics have been around longer than we can remember (dating back to the days of togas), but we just can’t stop lovin’ them.

Recent Tunic History

After popping up in blocky prints in the 1960s, after hanging off the shoulders of long-haired hippies in the 1970s, and after getting tighter and brighter in the 1980s and 1990s, tunics came rolling in with the tireless boho chic style, looking cuter and trendier than ever.

At the heels of the dress-over-pants look, which was worshipped by some and pooh-poohed by many more, the thigh-skimming top had skeptics grinning everywhere. Flattering, adorable, chic and palatable, tunics had just the right mix of style and practicality to have the world of fashion jump on board.

We’ve seen tunics in light fabrics that dance delicately at the hips, we’ve seen gaping boatnecks that hang seductively over tanned shoulders, and we’ve seen flirty ruffles, coy little ties, and plunging necklines. The chameleon of apparel, the tunic can take you all over the style map, from schoolgirl cute to southern-sun sexpot. We love the sexy, animal printed lovers + friends Weekend Tunic in 2 Colors, with its sultry cut-out shoulders and airy fabric, perfect worn on its own or with leggings or jeans.

Modern Tunic Style

For this round of tunic-mania, waistlines are bobbing from bust to hip and cuts are ebbing from swimmy to snug. First up, the tunic is embracing the babydoll. A welcome leftover from the warmer months, empire waists (or even higher!) give you a busty bosom that flares to perfection just at the hip. Not for those with a lot of luv up top, this look sprinkles you with innocence while revving up the sex appeal. Keep your eye out for banding or tie-back details, cap or palm-kissing sleeves, and full hemlines that sway and flow from your waist to your bottom.

Tunic Styling Tips

This brings us to rule number one when sporting a tunic: whatever you’re wearing from the waist down better be fitted, curve-loving and nowhere near baggy (with a few exceptions). With all that movement up top, keep it sleek and slender below – no one likes looking dumpy, now do they?

Gathered Tunics

A spin on the loosey-goosey tunic swaps the gathering under your bustline for a band at the hip, bringing the flowing fabric to a silhouette enhancing accent right where you need it. Such cuts benefit from a rouched neckline in either a wide “V” or sexy scoop, and the sleeves – either short or long – should  match the shirt’s hem with either a band at the upper arm or a cinched cuff at the elbow or wrist. Think of this season’s favorite tones – yummy chocolates, classy neutrals, or punches of reds, indigo and golds.

Knit Tunics

Fall’s influx of knitwear has tied tunics all up in a knot, giving your long-waisted looks a cozy feel with sweaters that start hugging at your chin and finish right under your caboose. We adore the Swan Dive Ruffled Tunic; this sheer, oversized crochet tunic is both feminine and bohemian, perfect for weekend looks.

Sturdier, thick, luxurious cable-knit tunics made from cottagey cool, and jailhouse stripes with floppy necks are saturated in adorable academia. Looking chic while keeping cozy and warm has never been so easy.

What to Wear with a Tunic

When donned in a tunic, it can all go wrong if you don’t piece together the right items:

• Choose skinny jeans, trouser-cut slacks or denim, or a pair of leggings, always elongating your legs with lean looks and a higher heel.
• Provided the tunic is long enough to be considered a dress — which means it covers your fanny and is long enough to allow you to sit down without flashing your bottom — go ahead wear your tunic solo, highlighting your legs with sky-high heels, wedges or boots.

Accessorizing Tunics

Buckle yourself in with a waist cinching or hip defining belt, giving a relatively curveless style a form-flattering finish. Or pick up a string of wooden beads and pile your wrists with boho bangles galore.

Far removed from the simple sheaths of ancient Rome, today’s tunic has the versatility of your little black dress with the of-the-moment style factor of those worn-once tragically trendy pumps. And as these head-to-hip tops catapult full-throttle into yet another season, the tunic is showing no signs of slowing down.

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Menswear-Inspired Fashion

Once upon a time, woman wanted to get noticed in the corporate world. Along with working her butt off and quashing weaker-sex stereotypes, she donned a set of ham-sized shoulder pads, covered up in a button-down, and boxed her figure in a straight skirt and oversized blazer. This was the eighties and she was a powerful woman in a power suit.

Boy Meets Girl: Menswear-Inspired Elements

Since lapping up the realm of menswear two decades ago, the “fairer sex” has never turned back. Creased trousers, fitted blazers, crisp button-downs — all staples in the closet of the woman who wants to be taken seriously. But this season, fashion has taken those staples and let them flourish in the limelight.

• Menswear Fabrics for Women
• Button-Down Shirts, Knits & Pinstripes
• Vests & Blazers
• Trousers & Pencil Skirts
• Plaid, Herringbone, Tab Details & Oversize Buttons
• Dashing Trench Coats & Fedoras
• Dapper Details: Boots, Ankle Boots, Tassels, Wingtips, Studs & Plaid
• Hats, Gloves & Handbags

Menswear Fabrics For Women

Traditionally masculine fabrics such as herringbone, tweed, plaid, check, pinstripe and flannel, are now front and center in women’s wear. And the classic gentleman silhouette is cropped, tailored and cinched to create conservative yet sexy styles that drip in old-school class. But with a whole closet to choose from, your no-flub philosophy is to embrace moderation and respect the diadem of detail. Avoid matchy-matchy head-to-toe fabric frenzies and choose signature pieces that give a masculine flair to your otherwise ultra-fem style.

Button-Down Shirts, Knits & Pinstripes

To master menswear, begin with your basics: the button-down shirt and the crease-front trouser. These unisex garments, in a trimmer, more feminine physique, easily transfer from his closet to yours. Up top, layering’s the word and knitwear, vests and blazers work their masculine magic. Over a flirtified dress shirt with ruffle-front detailing, slip into a heather-gray cable-knit V-neck that’s aglow in academia. A pinstripe button-down will fall in love with a sweater vest, and a crisp white shirt is begging to be tucked into a waistcoat.

Vests & Blazers

For button-up vests, masculine shapes that date back to when chained pocket watches were a necessity are seen from a feminine perspective, resulting in tailored and trim pieces that flatter a lady’s curves. Single or double-breasted, these miniature vests are painted in the season’s palette – tweed, herringbone and plaid — and are lined in signature menswear shirting.

Though not new to your wardrobe, blazers are playing a lead role in your borrowed-from-the boys production. In luxurious tweeds and herringbone, these classic pieces are seeing leather and corduroy elbow patches and a slimmed, sleek line. Black tux jackets (velvet optional) provide a red-carpet option – or at least the laywoman’s version – for dressing up while dipping delightfully into menswear.

Trousers & Pencil Skirts

Below the belt, the man’s closet is a wee bit sparse. You’ve got trousers, and that’s about it. And that’s why fashion has used menswear as a spring board to much greater heights. Yes, love your cuffed, wide-leg, crease-front trouser, but also adore a trim pencil or flouncy skirt in our new favorite fabrics.

Plaid, Herringbone, Tab Details & Oversize Buttons

Combine manly with girly by dousing a ruffle-back skirt in bold black and red plaid, or pair herringbone up top with a pair of cropped trousers equipped with tab details and oversized buttons.

Those mysteriously adorable (yet wildly impractical) formal short-shorts can also work here, but wrap your lower limbs in opaque hosiery and slip your feet into something flat.

Dashing Trench Coats & Fedoras

Style’s love affair with menswear hasn’t left you out in the cold – bundle up for the chilly season in classic coats that whisper of dashing detectives, feathered fedoras and dark alleys. The trench coat has been suped up with the signature masculine fabrics, while feminine curves are drawn with empire waistlines and ribbon-tie belts. The traditional trench is not to be forgotten, though, giving you the houndstooth-, plaid- and tweed-free option of a sandy beige or warm taupe. Keeping in tune to our desire to give the boy-borrowed pieces a much-needed slice, this season features oodles of cropped jackets with shortened hemlines and sleeves. Most stunning in a bold, inflated black-and-white herringbone print, these round-collar jacket often come to a single-button close and succeed at being both dashing and adorable.

Dapper Details: Boots, Ankle Boots, Tassels, Wingtips, Studs & Plaid

Toss aside your needlepoint stilettos and slender sexy boots and make room for chunky heels and clunky lace-ups – menswear-inspired footwear charts brand new territory. Keep rocking your peep-toe pumps and your sleek patent leather platforms, but save some mileage for a round-toe shoe that’s got some meat on its heel. Look out for such masculine detailing as antique metal accents, fringe, lacing, tassels, wingtips, studs, perforated leather trims and clunky soles. Fabrics range from your classic and reliable leather and suede, to daringly of-the-moment flashes of tweed, herringbone, and, you guessed it, plaid.

Hats, Gloves & Handbags

Such footwear perfection deserves a bookend of similar style success, and, when used sparingly, menswear-inspired accessories have got the right ingredients. When it comes to hats, all the boys are out to play — baker boy, newsboy, derby, fedora, bowler, oxford, and cabbie! Cute and coy, these tête-toppers in menswear-inspired prints keep you toasty without straying from style. Save your fingers from the cold, too, with a dashing pair of cropped and cuffed leather gloves, and wrap yourself up in a classic red plaid scarf. Chunky over-the-shoulder bags, doused in loads of leather detailing and swimming in herringbone, tweed and plaid, are right on cue, as are our favorite little clutches finished off with leather, metal or wooden hinged openings.

Add Feminine Flair to Menswear-Inspired Clothes

As this season continues its love affair with menswear, don’t let all the gentlemanly charm scoop you up and cloud your judgment. The trick to owning menswear-inspired style is to wear it all in moderation. We may adore the trusty trio of masculine fabrics, but head-to-toe pattern is never a good thing. And even though you’re borrowing from the opposite closet, aim for feminine silhouettes featuring details that are anything but masculine. With the perfect mix of masculine and feminine, you’ll be one stunningly stylin’ woman.

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Dressing Over: Tunics & Sweater Dresses

Ever since a fashion-forward friend of mine picked up a little girl’s cord jumper at a second-hand shop and slipped it on over a vintage tee and her favorite denims, I’ve been all over this trend.

It’s adorable, it’s functional, it’s all about layering, it’s conservatively coy and it’s downright cute.

And pooh-pooh to all those “wearing dresses over pants is for hippies” bores. We’re not talking about pairing knee-length peasant skirts and frocks with billowy trousers or tattered denim. We’re talking cute-as-a-button cropped dresses that barely skim your upper thigh over skinny jeans, leggings and tights.

Jumpers for Joy!

I [heart] jumpers! Yes, they may remind me of grade school, monkey bars and bashful cheek kisses, but these suspendered dresses have jumped out of the playground and landed quite lovably in the grown-up world. The actual dress that the fashion world has deemed a “jumper” is hardly a clear cutout, spanning from an apron-like frock to a miniature shift dress, but the ambiguity doesn’t bother us – they’re all cute!

Simply put, a jumper is young, its innocent, its sleeveless, its short and it loves (and has) to be layered. Slip a wool pinafore dress over a crisp, undersized button-down and charcoal leggings, or zip a plaid mini-shift over waffle-panted gams. And a chocolaty yummy cord jumper belongs atop deep denim skinny jeans tucked into a pair of proper brown riding boots.

The Unexpected

Dressing-over your ensemble isn’t limited to your lower limbs, either. Jumpers rest happily atop button-downs, fitted knitwear, sleek turtlenecks and anything else that is saturated in preppy cool. Hop out of the jumper-sphere and layer the unexpected by pairing the delicately minimal with the warm and fuzzy: strapless frocks with princess-necklines or corset-inspired bodices with minimal straps look unexpectedly divine atop contrastingly cozy knit sweaters and conservative mock turtles.

Let knitwear take your look entirely over with thigh-grazing pieces that’ll step up to defend your bod against the ever-tumbling barometer.

Delicious cable-knits, satisfying stripes and suped-up collars will keep you cozy from neck to knee. Slipped over a pair of leggings or your sexy skinnies (no bare legs, please), these snuggle bugs give you the dress-up factor of a casual sheath and the comfort of your grandmother’s wooly blanket. Is anything better?

Avoid with Care

When it comes to sweater-dressing, ditch conservative hemlines. Anything longer than a hand’s width above your knee is pushing it. When you pile shifts, jumpers and pinnies over skinny jeans, leggings and textured, coloured tights, you’ve immediately removed the risqué in short hems and have no risk of looking slutilicious, so hike ‘em up!

Don’t get lost in frumpy underpinnings. Baggy pants, blowsy tops, and saggy leggings are inarguably no-nos. You’re going for cute youthfulness here, not layer-o-matic bag lady.

Say no to naked. This is a dress-over trend, not an under-dressing trend! Just because we’re permitting (and celebrating) thigh-exposing hemlines does not mean we’re condoning them in all situations! Never shall a bare leg be pared with a sweater dress, nary a bare bum shall peak out from below a naked-gammed bend over, and never (ever) will the adjectives “short” and “tight” join to describe one garment.

Avoid enrolling in private school. If you match your plaid jumper with grey waffle leggings, a set of black knee socks, a charcoal cable-knit turtleneck and a pair of Mary Jane’s, something terribly wrong has just occurred.

Steer clear of totally abolishing this adorable trend in a school-girl geekoid disaster by upping the age factor in your footwear. Pointy-toed flats with buckle or bow details in patents or suedes finish off your legging-plus-dress ensemble, slip your stockinged tootsies into chunky heels with T-straps or buckles, and Robin Hood fold-overs and rocking riding boots are a happy home for your slim jeans.

So jump in! Layering pinnies, sweater dresses, shifts, apron-dresses and jumpers with conservative knitwear, preppy button-downs and cozy legwear brings out the little girl in all of us – and wasn’t she a lot of fun?

The Fashionable Christmas Sweater

Maybe it is the end of days. I never thought there would come a day when Christmas sweaters were leading fashion trends. Even more shocking? I might actually consider donning one of these Mary Maxim patterned sweaters, myself.

Fair Isle Knits, Cowichan Cardigans & Alpine Sweaters: Ready to Wear at Any Price Point

No, we’re not talking about Bill Cosby knits or your mother’s Christmas sweater replete with bobbles, bells and three-dimensional snowmen, but you most definitely will find patterned iterations of the chunky knit sweater, the season’s must-have item.

Designer boutiques are stocking up on Fair Isle knits, Cowichan designs, and Alpine patterns showcasing snowflake and heart intarsia… and the odd pair of two-dimensional reindeer.

From the “fast fashion” moguls at H&M right on up the sartorial totem pole to D&G, cardigans, coats, pull-over, shawls and shrugs are rocking this trend toward cozy knitwear, and they aren’t afraid to stylistically stamp it with distinctly Scottish-, Canadian-, and Alp-inspired techniques. Whatever your price point, you can nab a brand spankin’ new sweater patterned derivative of the traditional mosaic knitting techniques of the Scottish Shetlands’ Fair Isle and Canada’s British Columbian Cowichan clans, or you can go out on a stylish (and might I add, very snug) limb for a rarer, more authentic look by hunting down a vintage specimen from as far back as the early 1900s.

Mod Nods to Patterned Knits

There’s also the option of slimming down your chunky sweater and opting for a less traditional style, giving a minimalist nod to the spirit of a patterned knitwear with a more modern, bold statement of a single image on a solid knitted background.

How to Look Cool in a Holiday Sweater

One word of caution: don’t let the trendiness of these sweaters distract you from that fact that they have an enormous potential to look tacky, fast. You very well could be committing a fashion atrocity should you indulge foolishly and gratuitously on this trend. I advise steering clear of Fair Isle sweaters that have too many colors and patterns going on; two or three major colors (tops) are most likely to look classic and flattering, and always (always) invest in sweaters made from real wool or other natural fibers, or high quality blends. And a cheap-looking sweater is sure to land you on a faux-pas list somewhere in between Bill Cosby’s wardrobe and your mother’s closet.

The Little Black iDress

Who says fashion can’t be practical? You can  now wear the best iPad cases, as the classic little black dress goes high tech, all thanks to iClothing, an Australian company that has hybridized fashion and technology in stylish, iPad-toting garments.

iClothing

Creative Director of iClothing, Luke Staley says the iTee and iDress were developed with the digital lifestyle of Apple lovers in mind.

“[The garments] feature reinforced padded pouches which are comfortable and almost unnoticeable,” says Davina Reichman, Managing Director of iClothing.

The iDress Lets You Carry the Essential High Tech Gadget in the Essential Little Black Dress

The iDress is the little black dress suped up with a built-in pouch designed specifically to tote the much-anticipated Apple iPad on your person.

The iDress is a black, above the knee, short sleeved dress with a built in protected pocket to carry and store your iPad without hindering your movement or style. Constructed out of durable cotton sateen, the iDress is designed for work/day dress, and is made to be comfortable and (of course) iPad compatible. From the office to the cocktail lounge, read your iPad comfortably on your way to the next party in town.

Tote Your iPad in a High-Tech T-Shirt

And for men and more casual wear, iClothing also created a high-tech t-shirt called the iTee so you can stay connected and keep your iPad secure wherever you roam.

The Unisex iTee comes in white and black and like the iDress also has a protective almost invisible front pouch which stores and carries your iPad with you on the move. Made from 100 percent cotton jersey, the simple tee has never been so high tech.

Is the iPad Too Hot to Wear?

According to the garments’ innovators, wearing your iPad will not cause you (or it) to overheat, and iClothing does not require any special ventilation or insulation in its reinforced pouch.

Reichman says the iPad itself stays relatively cool, “In the last hour or so it will slightly heat up, but it will not keep you warm. It’s just a stylish way to store your iPad on the go.”

iClothing looks like the perfect answer to the question “What should I wear?” for men and women with a digital lifestyle. Just remember to remove your precious iPad before tossing your iDress or iTee into the laundry!

Get the iDress or iTee directly at iClothing.

Color Ban: White Fashion Trend

If you need a break from the bright fashion trend and Technicolor patterns making waves in the trend-pool this season you’ll be relieved to hear that equally fashionable on the streets this season — if a little tougher to keep clean — is pure, simple, white fashion.

The White Shirt, Reinvented

Gap has recently introduced a new limited edition collection inspired by the classic Gap white shirt for women, designed exclusively for Gap by Doo.Ri, Rodarte and Thakoon – three of the most celebrated, emerging American design labels in the industry today.

The designers are putting modern feminine twists on the classic, crisp white shirt — which has for so long been an indispensable staple in your boyfriend’s closet — by infusing it with the charm of swingy, geometric trapeze silhouettes and fresh detailing with the use of bows, ruffles, asymmetry and pleats. This fundamental of fashion has also had the pleasure of being morphed into comfortably chic dresses complete with pockets, buttons, collars and ties.

Trend Fusion: Go ahead and put a feminine twist on some other items lurking around in your boyfriend’s closet.

Blanched Mod Style

H&M continues to take a cue from mod-wear and bleaches it out in this adorable matching mini-dress and jacket. Use the white palette as an opportunity to pack a punch with colorful, contrasting accessories such as this season’s increasingly popular headband and a hefty sized bag generous enough to tote all of your essentials.

Skinny Mini Skirt

Legs are high on style this season, so show them off in this simplest of simple white, strapless mini-dresses from Banana Republic.

How can you rock this style? Slip into an espadrille, cinch it with an even skinnier belt and top this daring number with a slim, cropped blazer to ward off chilly nights.

Shift to White

Turn to Club Monaco’s A-line shift dress in tonal stripe for summery style that’s at once sexy, comfortable and classic. Slip into a pair of neutral toned espadrilles or leather thongs and you’re good to go.

Dress up this elegant look and infuse it with with your personal style by wearing a pair of funky earrings.

No matter how you cut it, white is the perfect cool answer to summer heat.