Tag Archives: BonLook

Blue Bird

It’s now 2013 and my love for the bird print still has not waned. I got this pretty mixed-print blouse last year because I loved the subtle colors. I can wear it casually with jeans, but I’m sure it would also be very pretty with a skirt or slacks. The birds had a bit of bright color in them and I decided to make more apparent by wearing these blue suede bow pumps. I almost chose a blue purse, but decided it was a little too matchy-matchy, so I kept my purse neutral.

Outfit – Bird print blouse c/o The Limited; Down East Basics jeans; Linea Pelle Domed Pyramid Stackable bracelet in rose gold; Shamballa bracelet c/o Cutey; Juicy Couture ring (old); Michael Kors watch; Rebecca Minkoff purse; BonLook Honeybadger glasses; Origami Owl necklace

Photos by Rholnna Jiao

Love In Itself

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow, and those of us in the San Diego Style Bloggers community are showing how we do up the day. I saw a segment on Refinery 29 on how Aimee Song (of the blog Song of Style) styled boyfriend jeans (article here). She paired them with an oxblood colored tuxedo jacket, a simple t-shirt and fantastic heels. I took note and borrowed her style for something that I would wear for a quiet dinner out with my husband. I decided to add a bit more shine by layering rhinestone necklaces, but kept my edge with the studded clutch. Also, I must bring special attention to the beautiful lace-up pumps that I got over the weekend during the first day of the Prabal Gurung for Target collaboration. I don’t know what it is about shoes, but I fall in love with a new pair a few times a month, and I am completely enmoured with these lovelies. Hope everyone has a wonderful day tomorrow with their special someone!

Outfit – Ark & Co jacket from Shimmer (seen here at their recent event); Bitten t-shirt; Old Navy boyfriend jeans; Charming Charlie necklaces and earrings; M’s Clothing studded clutch (only $10!); Prabal Gurung for Target lace-up pumps; La Marquise glasses by BonLook

You've Got it Made

This outfit includes a couple of handmade items: the vintage purse I re-worked by adding pom poms from Monday’s post, and a scarf that I knitted myself. Also included in this outfit are pieces made by the talented Suki of Suki Bijoux. In the detail picture below, you can see the vintage purse necklace, the “Recoil” ring and typewriter ring. Lately, I have been wearing her pieces mixed in with my favorite ones, like the @ ring by Wendy Brandes. Pieces like these handmade items give character to an otherwise simple California winter outfit.

Outfit – H&M jacket, sweater and jeans; Tod’s suede boots; Honeybadger glasses by BonLook; Wendy Brandes ring; vintage purse necklace, custom-made “Recoil” ring and “C” typewriter ring by Suki Bijoux; handmade knitted scarf and pom pom purse

Photos by Rholnna Jiao

I Confess

I first heard about Miista shoes when they followed me on Twitter. I love discovering new brands, and lately I find out them due to follows on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. I must confess that it was love at first sight when I went to the website, and I have been fascinated ever since (I used a couple of their shoes in some recent Polyvore collages, here and here). These are my first pair from Miista called the Gabi, and these shoes – along with everything that I see on their site – are show stoppers. I’m not one to shy away from a fantastic pair of shoes, and these shoes start conversations. Each time I wear them, I get stopped because people either want to know where I got them, or just to tell me they are an awesome pair of shoes. I wore them recently to the Shimmer event that I went to a few weeks ago, and because they are flatforms, they gave me the height I needed while remaining comfortable. I’ve already have a second pair from Miista’s AW2012 sale, and I’m deciding what to get next from their Electromancer SS2013 collection, which is simply ah-mazing.

Note: Miista is a UK based company, and I just realized how many English items I’m wearing other than my shoes: London Underground cuff, English Beat shirt (the title of this post is one of their songs), Union Jack purse, London map ring, and hidden under my shirt is my belt with a Union Jack buckle. I must really miss London!

Edited to add on 2/5/2013: Check me out on Miista’s site (here)! When you purchase shoes from Miista (directly from their site or the many retailers that sell their brand), take an outfit photo featuring their shoes and submit it to you at miista dot com, and you could win a free pair in a monthly drawing. I didn’t win this month, but I’m going to keep trying!

Outfit – Living Doll Los Angeles jacket; H&M jeans; English Beat concert t-shirt; The G Collection Union Jack studded purse; Gabi shoes by Miista (from Envi Shoes); London Underground cuff c/o designhype; rings by Wendy Brandes and Suki Bijoux; Michael Kors watch; La Marquise glasses by BonLook; Park Avenue lipstick by Radiant

(Photo 3 by Eddie Flores of Love Life Photography)

Old Navy

When I bought this sweater, it immediately reminded me of my father and old pictures of him when he was in the navy. I decided to really do up the outfit and I came up with something that made me feel like a vintage sailor girl, circa 1920’s to 1940’s. Then my sister and I went out to Harbor Drive near Downtown San Diego, so that we could have pictures with The USS Midway in the background. It was a beautiful day, which really made the pictures even more like the ones in our dad’s old photo albums, especially with the sepia color. I miss my dad, and it’s nice when we can pay some homage to him in small ways.

Outfit – Hell Bunny sweater from ModCloth; Libertine for Target dress; Hanes textured tights; Jeffrey Campbell shoes; Fleur de Lis necklace (close up here), “Recoil” and typewriter rings by Suki Bijoux; Wendy Brandes ring; handmade bracelet given by my best friend Janice; La Marquise glasses by BonLook; unknown brand purse

All photos by Rholnna Jiao

The Power of Customization: eShakti.com

I am definitely someone who takes garments to a seamstress or tailor to get things to fit correctly, or I will customize something to get it to be the way I want. So when I was asked by eShakti.com to review a garment, I was excited to see just how it all worked for an online shop. The premise of the site is to provide affordable clothing that can be purchased in standard sizes, or that can be customized to fit to one’s exact measurements. When ordering, standard sizing is available from 0 to 36W and they also ask for your height. For a small fee, if you wish to further customize your order, you can enter all of your measurements to receive a garment that is made to fit only you (and they will save your meausrements for additional and future orders)! Depending on the type of garment you are ordering, you can also choose sleeve length, sleeve type, and even the length of your skirt or dress. For instance, if you really like a dress pattern, but you would like a halter top in a shorter length as a casual dress, but maybe you would also enjoy it sleeveless in a longer length for a dressier affair, you can purchase the same dress in two different styles.

The internet allows us to be extremely customer-centric by enabling the buying to be inter-active.

Shakti means power in Sanskrit.

Internet + Shakti = eShakti.com.

I chose the Asymmetrical Fan Pleat Blazer because of the awesome design and detail. As soon as I added it to my “Awesome Outfits” board on Pinterest, it was repinned more than anything I have added to date, which means many of you out there agree! I chose a standard size, but entered my height and customized the sleeve to be a longer length. It took only two weeks from when I put in my order to when I received this beautiful, lined wool boucle jacket, exactly as it was pictured on the site and it fit perfectly.

I styled it two ways to show that this jacket is incredibly versatile and can be worn on a night out or for running errands with my son (who decided to join in the picture). This jacket is one of many fantastic pieces on the eShakti site, including retro flare dresses, skirts, and cardigans. If you are new to eShakti, your first time registration will also earn you a $25 gift certificate. I signed up myself, but I’m still deciding which dress I want because there are so many cute things to choose from. If you love retro styling, tailor made to fit you perfectly at affordable prices, check out eShakti.com!

Both Outfits – Fan Pleat Blazer c/o eShakti; BonLook glasses

Outfit 1 – Alice Temperley for Target dress; Forever 21 purse (old); Vince Camuto boots; black sheer stockings c/o Frangi Pangi; rings by The Shangri-La and Suki Bijoux; Radiant lipstick in Park Avenue

Outfit 2 – English Beat concert t-shirt; H&M jeans, cardigan (under jacket) and shoes; The G Collection Union Jack studded purse; rings and necklace by Suki Bijoux; Union Jack belt buckle was a gift

FTC Disclosure: I received free product and was asked to review the product in return. Although I did receive free product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

Pretty Vacant

I wore this to the San Diego Style Bloggers meet up last November, but did not get the chance to post the pictures. The only difference is that I’m wearing my new Bon Look glasses and different shoes. It was raining the night of the meet up, so I wore boots rather than these fuchsia pumps, fearing that they would be ruined. I know it’s a bold outfit, but this Sex Pistols shirt deserved some strong elements like the pops of color and metal accessories, like the Swear Rings and the London Underground cuff. The lyrics “We’re so pretty/oh so pretty” kept coming to mind while taking these pictures. Pretty? I hope you all think so! Vacant? Not a chance!

Outfit – American Living blazer; Sex Pistols t-shirt from Hot Topic; Guess jeans; Mossimo by Target pumps; Bonjour! bag from Jump From Paper; Wendy Brandes rings; Michael Kors watch; black La Marquise glasses by BonLook; London Underground cuff c/o designhype; Union Jack belt buckle was a gift from a friend

PS: Thank you Wendy Brandes for the mention on your blog (her post here)! That Jump From Paper bag is pretty amazing, as are your rings!

Photos 1 & 3 by Rholnna Jiao

Weekend in Pictures: Spectacle Soiree with BonLook

As you know from reading my blog, I wear glasses and I have recently discovered the joy of being able to change my glasses to match my outfits since I was introduced to purchasing affordable glasses online. I recently purchased a pair of glasses from BonLook after seeing this post by Keiko Lynn. I loved the Honeybadger frames on Keiko Lynn, but I had to get on the waitlist to get a pair in chocolate tortoise. When they became available, I received an email notification along with a $10 discount! After ordering them and receiving them, I was so excited that I Tweeted about my purchase. I was contacted back by BonLook and discovered that they have a representative here in San Diego, so we scheduled a “Spectacle Soiree” at my house with some of my friends to check out their styles in person.

With Erika from BonLook (I’m wearing Cavalier in Burgundy and she is wearing Drink the Koolaid, but gold is no longer available)

Erika Kirkland, a San Diego BonLook representative, helped me host this awesome little event . Knowing it would be a beautiful afternoon, I set up “shop” under a canopy in our front yard, so that my friends could enjoy the sunny weather and refreshments while shopping for prescription eyewear and sunglasses. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it really was a lot of fun because it was very low pressure, but interactive. The comments I heard from my friends was that it was great to try on what was seen online because they were unsure how they would look in person after only seeing a picture (even with the virtual try-on). I thought the pair that I ended up getting for myself (Cavalier in burgundy, pictured above with Erika) was too large online, but I loved the way they looked in person.

Erika helping Eileen with questions

Audrey making important style decisions (she ended up getting Bonnie & Clyde in black)

Erika with Sheena and Anitza checking out the great frames

Noel helping his girlfriend, Anitza, with selecting the perfect style

Tanya looking beautiful in Mile End in tortoise

If you would like to host your own event in San Diego, you can contact Erika at [email protected] and also check out her Bon Look page at BonLook.com/amb/erikakirkland. I would like to thank all of my friends, family and especially Erika for making my Spectacle Soiree a success, cheers!

Laughing with Eileen (I’m wearing my Honeybadger glasses with prescription, in chocolate tortoise)

With the gorgeous blogger Vanessa of Fashion Mixtape

My boy, Dominic, trying on The Aviator frames in green (on sale!)

With Dominic at the end of the party

(All photos by Rholnna Jiao)

FTC Disclosure: I did not receive any product or discount as incentive to host the above mentioned party (the discount I earned was through sales made at the party). The opinions in this post are strictly my own.

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