WINTER WHITE FASHION - IN FULL BLOOM IN 2018

FENDI FLORAL SATCHEL - $2,600 - NORDSTROM As much of the US plunges into a Polar VortexGUCCI "SYLVIE" BAG - $3,700.00 of freezing weather this Winter, you only have to step into your favorite luxury fashion house to see a #WinterGarden of sorts in full bloom!  Floral prints on Winter White leather bags and shoes from the chicest French and Italian houses in 2018.   What better way to bring some color in the dead of Winter?  These accessories are a gorgeous option to wear with the solid RTW items that have been so on-trend over the last 3 years. LOUIS VUITTON TWIST BAG - $4,400.00 Orange Blouse, Green Pants, and Floral bag.. perfection!  Gucci, Ferragamo, Fendi, Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga, and Judith Leiber are all in bloom in January. 

 The idea of fresh flowers in Winter is nothing new.  The grandest homes around the world have had Winter SALVATORE FERRAGAMO FLORAL "THALIA" CANVAS SHOULDER BAG - $1,290.00Gardens, Greenhouses, and fresh cut flowers year round for centuries. SALVATORE FERRAGAMO RAINBOW VARA SNAKESKIN FLORAL BAG - $2,200.00 However, it doesn't require a trust fund to haveBALENCIAGA FLORAL TOTE - $1,795.00 AT NEIMAN MARCUS paper whites or an Amaryllis at home, but just imagine the decadence of keeping a full greenhouse of delicate flowers close at hand. GUCCI FLORAL LEATHER BOOTS - $2,390.00 What a luxury! 

Looking at the different bags and shoes, it's amazing how floral prints can take on such different personalities. BALENCIAGA FLORAL BOOTS Some look romantic, some pop-art, some surreal, some so literal - all unique.  Depending on color and style, they can feel very formal, or playful and casual.  Which one fits your personality?  Which one would you wear to dinner? To the theater?  On Vacation?  

Click over to the department stores and boutiques that offer these bouquets.   Just like with real flowers, you don't always have to buy some today, but they always put a smile on your face!  Enjoy! 

JUDITH LEIBER COUTURE FLORAL MINAUDIERE - $3,995.00

PACK YOUR BACK - FJALLRAVEN KANKEN (AND EVERY LUXURY BRAND) HAS YOUR BAG

GUCCI, GIVENCHY, AND FENDI BACKPACKSWhat's the hottest bag for the Holiday season?  If the streets of NYC are any indication, it's not so much a bag, but a pack.  The Backpack has gone from runway novelty to bona-fide must have for the most fashionable and trendy.  What was once solely a staple on college campuses and those younger school kids, now, every age is wearing the bag that is better for your back, convenient to carry, and just plain cool.

FENDI, THOM BROWNE, AND SALVATORY FERRAGAMO BACKPACKSProof this is a popular trend?  A simple search of the thorough website of Saks 5th Avenue - Saks.com returned over 600 results! 

FENDI LUXURY BACKPACK "ODE TO KARL" Every major label from Saint Laurent to Salvatore Ferragamo have a back pack for every fashionable guy or girl.  Todd's, Valentino, Gucci, Stella McCartney, and Fendi are on it!  To get a designer quality pack, you need a budget upwards of $1,200.00.  If the sky is the limit, there are exotic skin bags in $5k range.  Rest assured, there are an endless amount of options in between.  GIVENCHY'S PATRIOTIC BACKPACK

On the flip side, one of the coolest (and most modern) ways to go is much more budget conscious and straightforward.  That is where the brand you can't pronounce - FJallraven Kanken (say Fee-yal-raven Kank-in) comes in.  These - made bags have been around for decades in Northern Europe.  Born in Sweden in 1960,  the packs have been available in the US since 2009, but have invaded North America in the last two years.  AN ASSORTMENT OF FJALLRAVEN KANKEN BAGS SPOTTED IN NYCIf I had a $1.00 for every bag I've seen in NYC on the street.......well let's just say I'd be able to buy a Fjallraven Kanken for sure!   That is part of the charm though, you don't need to spend much more than $100.00 to have one of the larger of these super durable canvas bags.  They come in a range of colors and a few different sizes.  Smaller sizes well under $100.00.  THERE IS A SIZE, SHAPE, AND COLOR FOR EVERYONE FROM FJALLRAVEN KANKEN The bags are not made in Sweden. 

Another entry level option that has some added social responsibility is TOMS.  Yes, those favorite shoes you love to wear and love to buy because you know they are donating a pair of shoes to someone in need with every purchase you make, also have a range of backpacks to carry everything.  The packs also have a social angle.TOM'S TOMATO BACKPACK  Every backpack sold donates dollars to a STOP BULLYING cause in schools.  I'm a big fan of TOMS, so it's hard for me not to love everything they do!

Whatever your age, budget, or style.. get yourself a backpack this year.  I promise your back will thank you, and you can thank me by coming back to the site :)

NOTE TO SELF:  if you prefer the designer bags from the major fashion houses, but don't have the budget you need to hit the stores - OFF 5TH also has some very fashionable backpacks in stock.  As seen at OFF 5TH - Valentino backpacks in two sizes (you might not believe the brands you find there, sometimes 50% off!!)  Click over!

LOEWE LOVE FOR FALL 2017

ELLE Magazine selected Jonathan Anderson's Fall LOEWE coat dress for their 18 hot looks for 2017. Photographer Terry Tsiolis created the rich world the look deserves - stylist Samira Nasr really made it look like the dream sequence you deserve! Polka-dot Coat Dress with Oversized Cuff and Collar - $2,690.00 - embellished Satin Sandals -$890.00 both LOEWE - wool Beret Kangol-$45.00In the world of luxury fashion in 2017 there are fewer and fewer "Houses" that you can always count on to make you stop and take notice. LOEWE FALL 17 POLKA-DOT COAT DRESS AS SEEN ON THE RUNWAY At least for me, there is a small group that I trust to really deliver luxury and design. For the most part, it is the usual suspects - Hermes, Chanel, and Ferragamo come to mind.  One that most American's probably don't reference is Loewe.   I've written about it many times.. but the Spanish house is wonderfully under the radar, in a way that is almost as rewarding as the designs itself.  It's like the Raleigh Hotel when it was run by Balazs.

Anyway, Loewe (say Low-ev-ayy) does not disappoint for Fall 2017.  Creative director Jonathan Anderson gives every piece the attention it deserves to stand on it's own- as one SHOULD expect at a luxury house.   The polka-dots got me... and then LOEWE small PUZZLE BAG in calfskin - $2,350.00seeing that coat come to life in Elle Magazine is more exciting than it should be!  Shot by photographer Terry Tsiolis for Elle's 18 (hottest looks) for 17 - it was styled so excellent on the go by Samira Nasr The collection has so much to see!.. honestly - there is so much that a new designer could just pick looks and run with it for many collections to come.  I would be lying if I said that you could say a big "trend" from the collection was polka-dots - but that coat dress just won't let me go! 

*Side Note - Anderson's own capsule collection with fast fashion retailer UNIQLO is in stores NOW!!

Not to mention- in a world of designer handbags that look one-like-the-other..  Loewe created a new shape and made it their signature.   Buy one.. Buy two ..  You will have them for the rest of your life - if you want to! 

Shop LOEWE now.

MILEY IN MALIBU - IS COURTNEY LOVE STILL THERE?

MILEY CYRUS - MALIBUThe sun and sand of dreamy Malibu, California has been inspiring people for as long as there have been inhabitants of the West Coast of the United States.  For the last 80 years, Malibu has also been known as the playground of the rich and famous of Hollywood.  When those stars of the big screen talked about a "beach house", they usually mean one in Malibu.

Miley Cyrus is the latest artist to publicly be inspired by this pristine oceanfront stretch of land through her single MALIBU.  It's sweet and direct as Miley thanks that special someone in her life for introducing her to the beautiful beeches of Malibu.  It's one of the pop songs of the Summer of 17, with those unmistakable Country references that only Miley Cyrus can pull off so effortlessly.  As a born and raised Nashville star herself, and child of another, a strength of Miley's music is that she has all those country references in her toolbox. 

Miley's perfectly casual beach style is maybe the best argument for a long sleeve sweater over a bikini bottom I've ever seen.  There is someone so innocent, yet sensual about the style, and of course Cyrus herself.  There's an unbridled energy there that she always has just beneath the surface.  She is Lolita incarnate, but as sweet as Apple Pie as well.  MILEY ON THE BEACH IN MALIBU

If you can watch the video without wanting to plan a trip to the beach, you just might be a bot!

Click below to download the single or watch the video. MILEY performs MALIBU at the 2017 Billboad Music Awards   See you at the beach!

I can't NOT mention that amazing tune Malibu from a very different artist - Courtney Love and her band HOLE back in the 90's..COURTNEY LOVE / HOLE - MALIBU  It's still one of my favorite driving songs!  Click LOVE MALIBU to hear that one.