So it’s just about that time again…market!  As every market goes by so do our dreams of Sonia by Sonia Rykiel.  Before every market, Brandon and I get our wishlist together of designers we’d love to carry & style in our Shop.  One line that always makes it on both our lists, but yet always seems to evade us is Sonia by Sonia Rykiel.  :(

Sonia Rykiel's famous broche bouche (mouth pin)

Wouldn’t you just love any one of these flirty little pieces??  Wouldn’t you just love to easily get your hands of them by just clicking into our Shop??  Wouldn’t you just love to see the many different ways to style & love that one piece?  Then help us, help you!  Help us find that one evasive contact (aside from the Parisian email…we assure you, we’ve tried that!!)  We’d be forever thankful  We love you Sonia!!

This Aneta Bartos editorial featuring Tiiu Kuik has been making the internet rounds lately after being posted on Fashion Gone Rogue. I had never seen it before and instantly fell in love with it. 

I just adore anything with a pin-up girl, film noir,  or old Hollywood feel so this really spoke to me. I was taken with the photography and also the model and came across a few more amazing shots that I just had to share.

These are from another editorial featuring Tiiu, this one from Numero 49, L’Ange Noir.

Love that hair and make-up. The drawn-on eyebrows and the black lipstick — so dramatic.

And a few more from Ms. Bartos…

I love the lighting and the treatment she uses. Just makes me, once again, realize that I was seriously born in the wrong decade.

images from fashiongonerogue, modelcouture, and Aneta Bartos Photography

Word is out that the classic and iconic trench has been retooled by no other than Christopher Bailey and Sarah Lerfel, of and exclusively for Colette.  Here are a few pics of the collaboration available next month and a few more pics….the classic done streetstyle, editorialized in Paris Vogue by the one-and-only, Carine Roitfeld and lastly, proof that this classic is fabulous at any age!

images via The cool hunter, Jak & Jil, Fashion Gone Rogue, Vanessa Jackman and Materialiste

I’ve been very obsessed with color lately. Maybe it’s because we’re in the throes of gray season here in Chicago, or maybe it’s just because there’s so much darn cute color out there! Either way, I’ve found myself drawn to much different things recently. I’m paying a lot more attention to art direction and set and prop styling. And I’m also really into hair and make-up right now and the way they add to a photograph. It’s fascinating to me to try and wrap my head around all the things that go into creating a shot, not to mention an entire editorial. Stumbled across this bright and glorious story from photographer Chris Nicholls. Lots of cohesive, well-integrated color. The eyeshadow, the nails, the background, the styling. So pleasing to look at.

images via chrisnichollsphotography.com

ahhhh….The dreaded (or not so dreaded) swimsuit.  The warmer weather season is slowly creeping up on us (and maybe even a vacation or two) and that means, yes, so are swimsuits.  It’s hard to find that perfect suit.  We want it all….one that’s ready for fun or just hanging out in the sun, and flattering & stylish.   Brandon & I never gave swimsuits a second thought for our online store for those reasons alone…much too hard to find for ourselves, but for others too?!  When we came across this small assortment of bathing beauties by Loeffler Randall, there was no question…we had to have them in our Shop!

Lookout for SWIM in The Shop this March!

images from top to bottom:

underwire bikini top & lace-up bikini bottom

zipper one piece

sweater tank & string bikini bottom

lace-up one piece

Thank you Loeffler Randall for the images!

A woman we admire for her incredible talents in the fashion industry (her boutique, Yasmin Cho was voted one of the top five most influential three times over, was the buying director at Browns and is the creative consultant for Liberty), her fantastic personal style (love her understated-and-yet-always-makes-a-statement style) and of course, her gorgeous hair….hair that I just dream about.

images via Tumbler, Style and the city, Getty, The Sartorialist, Garance Dore

Okay, this is old news. Well, it is for a lot of people, but I just recently came across these Russian Matrioshka dolls from Vogue Russia’s 10th anniversary (Nov ‘08). I love the concept and execution of this so much. Commission 31 fashion designers to create exclusive outfits for a tiny wooden doll and then enlist the finest Russian craftsmen to execute the designers’ sketches. A pretty brilliant idea, don’t you think?

And I’m not going to lie — I really enjoy the game of trying to match the outfit with the designer (these are some easier ones — I’m not even going to try and pretend that I could identify the majority of them)

By row from top left: 1. Burberry, 2. Prada, 3. YSL, 4. Cavalli, 5. Dries, 6. Marc Jacobs, 7. Paul Smith Women, 8. Marni, 9. Stella McCartney, 10. Sonia Rykiel, 11. Moschino, 12. Giles, 13. Margiela 

When we launched, we worked with a very small number of showrooms and reps. One of the very first showrooms we went to was Steven Alan. We had this amazing rep. Liz. Like seriously, Liz was ah MAYY zing. Arlene and I have this ongoing unofficial game we play whenever we send a request or question to a rep to see if they can beat Liz’s record of Most. Attentive. Ever.

One of the many things that made Liz such an amazing rep was her honest and no-bullshit way of telling us what she thought we needed and what she thought we didn’t. And Liz knows what’s what. She steered us toward Lemlem, she steered us toward Demylee, she steered us toward that insanely perfect Boyy bag that drops in March, and… she steered us toward Sunshine & Shadow.

From the moment we were steered over to the mesmerizing wall of tie-dyed scarves, we were in love. Until now, we’ve only carried these bright and beautiful gems. Well with Spring two thousand and 10, that’s all about to change. For Spring, Sunshine & Shadow is offering some enchanting silk shifts in a gorgeous array of color-blocked combos. l.o.v.e. LOVE!!  

  Last week we shot our upcoming February cover story and featured a number of these darling little numbers.

Clearly our styling and vibe for the story are a little bit different from the S & S lookbook, but that only goes to show you how truly awesome these little shifts are! Here’s a little more of the goodness to come. 

We just loved the quirky styling in all these images — so cute with all the colored knee-highs and colorful sandals. And also love the creative uses of the scarves. So refreshing to see something that feels new. 

all images via Sunshine & Shadow Spring 10 lookbook. Check out the rest here.

Prefall is well underway.  Here’s just a small sample of what caught our eye from Loeffler Randall….

Over in another part of our website, the shop, we carry a little line called Lemlem. Launched in 2007 by supermodel and philanthropist Liya Kebede, Lemlem is a line of women’s and children’s clothing hand-woven in Ethiopia using only natural cotton. Embracing her African heritage, with Lemlem Liya seeks to “add a sense of diversity to the fashion market while fueling prosperity in another.” A very noble cause. Arlene and I were very taken with her hand-woven scarves, wraps and cowls when we first saw them…

Being an online store, we were also very excited that Liya is the model in the Lemlem lookbook meaning that we would have a supermodel on the website. Little did we know that her scarves would sell SO fast that her picture would never even make it up!

Things just keep getting better for Lemlem and Liya, as evidenced by this spread in Italian Elle…

It’s so nice when people use their fame and success for good. Go, Liya. You’ll be seeing much more of Liya and Lemlem on twentythirtyforty.net, that’s for sure.

images from Lemlem Fall 09 lookbook and Italian Elle via Steven Alan showroom