Thursday, February 26, 2009

Five Fashion Ideas for a Bum Economy

It's hard out there for a pimp! Here are my five latest and greatest to hopefully get you through this rough patch.

1.) Get your shoes resoled: if you're like me and you own a lot of shoes and you walk hard in them, you might find you've quickly gone down to the nailhead in the heels of a few of your favorite pairs. We all know this is because unless they are a luxe shoe brand, women's shoes are made to decompose at a more rapid clip than men's shoes. For a fraction of the cost of buying a new pair, you can get your lovable old shoes resoled and feel like new because the cobbler will shine them too!

2.) Ditto on leather handbags: sometimes the stitching in a leather bag will fray to the point at which you don't want to use it anymore. A shoe repair person who wants the business can help you with the fix.

3.) I sweat. A lot. In an attempt to not get too graphic, this means I go through a lot of white shirts. I recently found a formula online of 1/3 baking soda, 1/3 water and 1/3 hydrogen peroxide for removing those yucko shirt stains. You have to scrub very hard and can therefore irritate your hands if you don't wear plastic gloves, but it was worth it for me when I reclaimed about 8 shirts I had previously given up on!

4.) There's a lot in your closet you bought last year that you don't wear. Hey, come on now...admit it! If you can't wait until next year's tax break to realize the benefit of donating your old duds, take them to Revente in Five Points and see if maybe they'll work on consignment there. The last mess of clothing and handbags I left yielded $156. The grooviest part is that, similar to Beacon's Closet in NYC, you can use your credit towards shopping for other items at the store.

5.) If you still need a "spend money" fix after all of this, then keep it on the cheap and go check out the Orla Kiely for Target housewares line in stores right now. Her iconic pear print is used on tablecloths, seat cushions, place mats, kitchen towels, etc.

Keep an eye out for more tips coming soon!

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

21c in Louisville KY

This is a quick post to let you all know about the absolute coolest hotel I've ever been to - 21c Hotel - which is actually a museum, a hotel and a fabulous restaurant all in one in Louisville, KY. It's pure brilliant genius and apparently something that the owners are aiming to develop in cities around the country (maybe world?).

Some of the pieces in the museum space are so cutting edge it's a shame that I have to use that played-out term to describe them. The restaurant highlights LOCAL food when possible/available and the bartenders are super nice, friendly and knowledgeable. I really and truly can't say enough good things about this groovy place. If you're heading to the Ville, be sure to get yourself over there!

I was in town for a conference and was also able to find the mint-flavored Maker's Mark which, in my experience, is ONLY available in Kentucky. Pretty exclusive stuff - you picking up what I'm laying down?

More to come. Over and out.