Trend Alert - Boyfriend Blazers

From the "everything old is new again" files, one trend that I keep seeing over and over again is the boyfriend blazer. Elizabeth & James (MK and Ashley's line) has a super-cool version with feathers on it, and other versions seem to be popping up everywhere.

Now, back in college I used to comb the Greencastle Salvation Army store, picking up men's blazers and wearing them with my jeans (folded in to be "stovepipes" at the bottom, of course). I had one in particular that I absolutely loved that I picked up from Dinwiddie's (still going strong in Broad Ripple) - it was a black man's blazer that had been customized with an awesome leopard collar.

While my Salvation Army stash is long gone, I find myself planning a Goodwill run this weekend to comb the racks for - you guessed it - a great man's blazer. Only this time my plan is to pop it on over cute little dresses as a way to transition into spring, ala Heidi Klum on last night's Project Runway. I realize I'm not Heidi Klum, but I think it's a cute look for regular girls, as well.

Speaking of Project Runway, Tim Gunn said two things last night that I cannot wait to incorporate into my own conversation. 1) "My gag reflex is kicking in," and 2) "This is like when you go into the monkey house at the zoo and think, 'God it stinks in here.' But after you've been in the monkey house for a half hour you think, 'It's not so bad.' And after a day in the monkey house you can't smell a thing. You've spent too long in the monkey house." Both of these classic Gunn-isms came in response to Chris March's use of real human hair in his designs, and both illustrate why I can't get enough Tim Gunn.

Make it work, people...

Jovovich-Hawk Arrives in Target on Sunday

Mark your calendars - this Sunday, March 2 marks the arrival of the Jovovich-Hawk collection for Target. Especially if you shop at the Nora Target like I do, where the GO Collection gets picked over quickly, it's very important to get there early.

Now, I know I've soured of late on the "upscale designers partner with mass retailers on cheap fashion" trend. But I'm going to give Jovovich-Hawk a chance - the photos that I've seen of several of the dresses anyway look cute. We'll see in person on Sunday. Pretty hippy-dippy 70s-inspired, but that seems to be a trend that will never go away, at least if you take a look at what Anna Sui and Gucci continue to send down the runway.

See you on Sunday...

Goosing the Goose

My new little "localista" experiment now encompasses food, thanks to the Goose Market. Located at 25th and Delaware, it's a haven for local foodies and winos (like yours truly...the wino part, anyway).

Stocked with local meats and cheeses, including dry-aged, grass-fed beef raised right here in the state, the Goose also makes a great sandwich. I'm partial to the brisket - which I liked better the second time, when they topped it with blue cheese and some sort of yummy mayonaisse-y dressing.

Be sure to go downstairs, where all the beer and wine is stocked alongside a rather random array of dry goods. If you want an obscure Italian brand of canned tomatoes, you'll find it here. Otherwise, don't expect to be able to do all of your grocery shopping at the Goose. Just the good stuff...

A couple of quick updates. 1) I've decided that music can't be included in my localista experiment. It's just too wasteful (both in terms of money and environmental waste) to buy CDs when I only want a song or two. So that didn't last long, but I'm happy about it. 2) I returned the butterfly bag. Upon seeing the Prada original in NYC (by the way, the whole SoHo store is painted with fairies right now), I realized that the butterfly bag is not at all a reasonable facsimile. Not at all.

Forever in Love with Forever 21

As a new homeowner, I'm watching my pennies right now. Thank God for Forever 21 - a place where you can get a quick fashion fix for under $50. In most cases, for under $30.

I know the designers HATE Forever 21 - Anna Sui has even sent models down the runway in anti-Forever 21 t-shirts - and I can understand why. On a quick trip through the store, I saw looks "inspired" by J.Crew, Missoni, and Miss Sui herself.

Take this dress I just bought. It's a reasonable facsimile of the dress that J Lo wore to the Marchesa show during NY Fashion Week. And it was $29.80. No doubt the Marchesa version is more like $2,980. Now, I'm sure the Forever 21 folks saw this photo of J Lo and immediately got the kids in the sweat shops going on the knockoff, which is on the racks two weeks later.

Sure, I feel a little guilty keeping the sweat shops in business, but I'll get over it.

Becoming a "Localista"

As longtime readers of this blog know, IndyStyle has been conflicted from day one on what "Indy Style" should really mean. Does it mean that I will confine my shopping only to Indianapolis locales? It hasn't, but more and more I'm thinking it should.

So, inspired by the local food movement, I'm embarking on a little experiment. For the remainder of 2008 (essentially the whole year), I'm only going to spend my money at Indiana stores. I'm broadening it beyond just Indianapolis, because I think a Bloomington excursion would be just fine. The local food folks call themselves "Localvores;" I'm adopting "Localista" as my handle for shopping only locally.

This means no online shopping - for anything, including music. I'm going old school there - not taking the easy way out and downloading from iTunes, but going to record stores (even though they hardly exist anymore) to buy CDs. That alone will be interesting. It will certainly make it more difficult to get my hands on things like DJ Rekha's new disc, which I highly recommend (and thankfully downloaded yesterday, before this whole idea took hold). Ditto for books. I know, it's easier and quicker to just order what you want from Amazon, but where's the fun in that?

I'm also going to try - and this is just going to be an attempt - to frequent locally owned stores as much as possible. So avoid the chains. Now, I can't be completely strict about this, as a year without darkening the doors of Target or Sak's is just too much to bear, but I will try to support my own local economy as much as possible. French Pharmacie, thankfully, continues to be a safe haven.

This also means no vacation shopping. However, if someone (say, my mom) buys me a gift while I'm shopping with her on a vacation or something, that is acceptable. It's not my money, after all. She's supporting her own local economy...

I think this will be interesting. At the very least, it will allow me to better serve my readers, as I'll be forced to uncover more hidden gems.

Trendwatch globally, spend locally...

Thinking Vintage

First off, let me just say that I love the information age. I remember in the old days - like 5 years ago - we had to rely on the editors of the fashion mags to update us on the trends of the upcoming seasons. Due to their long lead times, we wouldn't really get a sense of the shows until months after they happened, and the editors got to be, well, editorial and only spotlight what they saw as the important looks.

Thanks to www.style.com and - my new favorite discovery - UltraHD network (I think this is only available on Dish Network - I just had mine hooked up this weekend), we can all sit front-and-center at all of the fashion shows. As I unpacked boxes in my new home this weekend, I found myself consistently mesmerized by "Full Frontal Fashion" on UltraHD, which was literally televising all of the recent NY Fashion Week shows, interspersed with interviews with editors, buyers and even some of the designers talking about the key trends in each show. While it got a little over-the-top with the breathless praise (I loved the, "Our front row rated this show a spectacular 8.5!" following each show...I never saw a show get lower than an 8 from the "front row"), you've got to love being able to watch the shows and determine the trends from your own vantagepoint, without having to rely on the editors.

So with that long-winded introduction, here's my advice for spring - which will move forward nicely into fall. Go vintage shopping! Now, I've been a longtime lover of vintage clothing since high school. But I have to admit that lately, my vintage loving had lagged a bit. Maybe because the vintage clothing store scene here in Indy is less-than-stellar (whatever happened to Modern Times?), or possibly because I've just been focused elsewhere, I've not bought anything old in a long, long time.

But from Miuccia Prada's resort '08 collection, which was very 50s in feel, to Michael Kors's fall '08 collection, which was very Jackie Kennedy/60s, clearly vintage is the prevailing vibe. Even Marc Jacobs went back in time - albeit to the 80s which is, frighteningly, also vintage at this point.

Thankfully, with the exception of rare vintage designer pieces that can be quite pricy, most vintage is reasonably priced. Just keep in mind as you're treasure hunting that condition is key. I've learned the hard way that that "not so fresh" smell won't come out, no matter how much Fabreze you spray on it, and even seemingly simple repairs can add greatly to the cost of a garment.

Ebay, here I come!

Elizabeth & James - No One-Hit Wonders

Mary Kate Olsen might not be the first person I'd want called if I accidentally od'd, but I have to hand it to her - she and her sister Ashley are winning me over with their Elizabeth & James line.

As you'll recall, I liked several of the pieces from their fall collection; spring is now here and there are some pieces I'm lusting after from this one, too.

The good news - Elizabeth & James is now being carried by Saks (at least on their website, www.saksfifthavenue.com if not in our local outpost) as well as Neiman-Marcus. The bad news - I'm totally broke right now. But I can always admire from afar!

Great Source for Wines

I have to credit my brother for turning me on to a terrific online wine store, www.flickingerwines.com. Clearly knowing my champagne taste/beer pocketbook conundrum, he shared their weekly email with me - basically the gist of it was that they'd put some already cheap (but good) wines on sale. Choices were as low as $5, and none were over $20. Given that the site is run by a connoisseur, I felt confident ordering wines that I've not heard of, trusting they'll be good. Oh, and you get an extra 5% off when you order a case (can be a mixed case), and since the biz is located in Chicago, there's no sales tax when shipped to Indianapolis.

The only drawback is that the only relatively reasonable way to ship a case of wine is UPS ground, which due to winter weather won't start until late March or early April.

Check out the site (www.flickinger.com) for their selection of bargain wines. Oh, and if you'd like to impress your friends with a giant, 6 liter bottle of 2004 Dom. Romanee-Conti La Tache Grand Cru Red Burgundy (for a cool $19,000), they have that, too. Only one bottle, though, so hurry.

A Girl's Gotta Eat

I don't normally cover restaurants on IndyStyle, but since it's sort of lull time in the fashion world (winter/holiday sales are done and spring hasn't really sprung yet), I thought I'd take this opportunity to plug a new restaurant that I'm totally loving - The Meridian.

It's located where Dodd's Townhouse used to be, but it's completely different than Dodd's. The atmosphere is great - especially for winter. It feels like a lodge inside, and there's a cozy fireplace (I'm a sucker for a crackling fire). If you go without kids (which I always do), I recommend sitting in the bar. You can order from the full menu in there, and I prefer the atmosphere on that side of the wall (not sure what that says about me).

The food is great, too. I've not tried any entrees yet, but every appetizer, salad and soup I've tried has been pretty great. I particularly love their take on onion soup. Rather than having to navigate a thick layer of stringy cheese to get to the soup, they toast the cheese on top of a piece of baguette, so it's just cheesy enough but not overwhelming. The oysters Rockefeller are a treat, too - they're lightly fried, which was a new take for me on an old favorite. The shrimp risotto stands out, as well. If you're not too hungry, there's enough there for an entree. Especially if you order the macaroni and cheese on the side (I know, I know - heavy on the carbs) - it's the best mac and cheese I've ever had. No blue box here; just a blend of yummy cheeses and the unmistakeable hint of truffle oil. Is it dinner time yet???