Ladies Plaza

Formatmag.com Presents 50 Signs That You’re Obsessed with Sneakers:

1. When you realized Formatmag.com dropped their annual sneaker issue in September, you put on your best kicks before reading it.
2. Vacations are just a chance to visit different cities’ shoe stores.
3. You have developed a style of walking that neither creases the toe nor flexes the body of the shoe.
4. You know who Tinker Hatfield is.
5. You’ve lined up (or camped out) for shoes.
6. You vividly remember each and every shoe regret (a pair you didn’t cop when you had the chance).
7. You keep the box of every pair you buy – as well as the crinkled tissue-paper wadding inside the shoes.
8. You love Air Force 1’s and Dunks.
9. You hate how played Air Force 1’s and Dunks have become.

10. You’re into kicks that aren’t Nikes (and you must be a lonely dude in the game).

11. You’re mad when they never release the colorway you want.
12. You then create the colorway in Photoshop and post it on NT.
13. You have a Jumpman tattoo.
14. You wish you had a Jumpman tattoo.
15. You have the And 1 man tattoo (oops, that just means you’re in the NBA – or really, really wish you were).
16. You’ve got a pair of kicks you ain’t see nobody rock, not online or eBay or the streets.
17. You dislike a particular basketball player based solely on his shoes.
18. Based solely on design, you cop the signature shoes of a player you dislike immensely (VC, anyone?).
19. You’ve driven over 200 miles to cop a pair, and you don’t even own a car.

20. You remember your first sneaker as fondly as your first girlfriend (maybe moreso).

21. On more than one occasion, you’ve had people (girlfriends, family, friends) cop a pair on release-date because you were otherwise entangled (like working at your job).
22. You must lace up your kicks yourself, even if they come pre-laced.
23. Your shoes must be included in any picture you’re in
24. You chat with the peeps on NT more than your girlfriend.
25. Your 9-to-5 at your 9-to-5 is eBay.
26. You make Top Sneakers of the Year lists (like this one).
27. You know the two non-Jordans Mike wore in the NBA (Air Ships & Air Flight Ones).
28. Moms bought you skips growing up, and years later, you’re getting your revenge.
29. You know who Bruce Kilgore is.

30. You buy doubles.

31. You can’t afford to, but you buy doubles anyway
32. You saw Space Jam in the theatre (word to Bill Murray rocking J2s pre-retro, as well as Terminators in a Gatorade commercial, also pre-retro).
33. You hate when Nike puts out cheap versions of nice joints (Zoom Kobes vs. Zoom Legends, Hurache 2K5s vs. Total Package, More Uptempo vs. Much Uptempo, etc.).
34. You have over 20 pairs of the same model in different colorways.
35. You buy clothes based on how they coordinate with your kicks.
36. You keep saying “this is the last pair…” knowing full-well it ain’t.
37. You not only clean your sneakers regularly, you also have a tool kit (toothbrush, suede brush, sole brush, shoe-cleaner, etc.).
38. There are kicks you haven’t wore in years – because you just can’t find them amongst all the shoe boxes.
39. You know what kicks you’d like to be buried in.

40. You buy more than doubles.

41. You buy kicks that aren’t your size – and not necessarily to resell.
42. You buy your girlfriend nice kicks in a lame attempt to get her into the game (which doesn’t often work).
43. You call it “the game.”
44. You hate when Nike (or whoever) puts out a re-issue of a sneaker that you own the original of.
45. You’ve signed an online petition to bring a particular model back into production.
46. You know that Mike Bibby wore Foamposite Ones in the NCAA ’97 championship game, and Khalid El-Amin wore Flightposite Ones in the NCAA ’00 championship game.
47. You’ve asked someone on the street “where’d you get those?”
48. Someone on the street has asked you “where’d you get those?”
49. You actually believe wearing _________s make you a better basketball player (hey, 90% of the game is mental – but not the sneaker game; 90% of that is dollars)

50. Your calendar is marked with release dates, not holidays.

ROCCO Barocco put a broken mirror effect on clingy cocktail dresses for his spring and summer 2008 show, while Clips used feathers to finish long, slim evening gowns.

BRITISH supermodel Naomi Campbell put in a surprise appearance on the first day of the Milan ready-to-wear fashion shows, which began at the weekend.

It looks like premium footwear brand Ubiq and Japanese apparel brand rehacer have teamed up to give you their latest take on the Fatima model.  A simple upper of full grain leather in black or white give the illusion of just a regular shoe, but as you and i know, this sneaker is a man amongst boys.  Nothing yet as far as availability, so just keep em open and be ready.

Info.Image:  Hypebeast

We’ve been taken with the Sovereign Beck range of ties for some time. The Brooklyn-based company create snappy, stylish ties that mix wickedly vibrant lines with quirky, illustrated shapes. We interviewed Ryan Sovereign—one half (with William Beck) of the duo behind the label. (See CH’s egg-frying, kite-flying, jam session video to get to know them both a little better visually.)

What makes a good tie? Is it the fabric, the color, the texture, the cut, or a mix of everything?
I think a lot of it is the pattern on the tie, whether that is the print or the weave. I own polyester ties, mix material ties and pure silk, all of which I would wear. I will say that a ‘wide’ tie or a ’skinny’ tie is going to make a statement of its own. I try to stay in that mid-range of not going to far either way. When you start going to those extremes, you are looking to make a different statement then just wearing a nice looking tie.

For a while there it seemed that everyone was getting all casual on us, trainers, t-shirts, cargo pants wherever you looked. But smart suits and crisp collared shirts seem to be having a mini-revival. Do you agree?
I totally agree. When we started, the world was still that phase, but we were hoping that things would come back around. They always do, don’t they? While being casual and comfortable has its place, there is always something to be said for dressing up and feeling sharp. Who wants to go to a nice restaurant or fashionable event and just see a bunch of dudes in khakis, printed t-shirts and sandals. “Every girl crazy ’bout a sharp dressed man!”

Where does your passion for creating beautiful ties come from?
We both have a strong appreciation and love for design from the turn of the century to today’s designs. We absorb everything we see and want to have a place in that world. I think that the desire to be appreciated now and twenty years really drives us to create a more timeless aspect to our prints instead of just aiming at the immediate trends.

Which one are you wearing now?
If I were wearing one, it would be Levitate.

The A03 was fashioned by New Balance Japan with the influence of the classic 1984 release of the P991, in mind. The P991 edition was originally trendy on the basketball courts but the A03 shoots way left field with capturing the rugged mountain look with the fur liner. The A03 OO (green/orange) and The A03 BP (purple/black) are obtainable now at Mita Sneakers.

Info.Image: Hypebeast

The Quiet Life just released its five-shoe collaboration with Lakai shoes. Designed by Andy Mueller, these
5 sets of shoes are available directly through The Quiet Life’s online shop and at most finer skate shops and boutiques.

“We’ve been hinting about this for months in our news section about doing one shoe with Lakai,” says Andy ” When they first asked us to do a shoe, we were expecting to do one shoe…so when it turned into five shoes we couldn’t believe it.”

True to Lakai’s limited nature, there are only a few sizes of each style. You can see if you are a lucky one who the “shoe fits” at thequietlife.com and
lakai.com.

Keeping true-to-form of the concept of matching sneaker colorways to the season, Nikebrings to us this most innovative model of the Air Max Light yet.  Dubbed the “Forest Funk” for obvious reasons, this seasonal gem is full of unconventional potential.  Features include silk-screened khaki panels with a distressed suede-like upper, both of which have never before been seen on a shoe before.    No info on release as of yet, but we will let you know when the time has come. 

Info.Image:  Sneaker Freaker

Alicia Hillman wears a vintage dress with butterfly appliqués from Beacon’s Closet and Steve Madden shoes. “My look is Vintage Chic. I always wear vintage. It definitely fits my personality.”

Photo by Elizabeth Lippman ©09-08-07

Reuters - The carpet was red, but white,
black and strong jewel tones proved to be the colors of choice
for Hollywood's stars at the Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday,
with a bevy of tanned and sparkling women wearing strapless
gowns.

From ideas that ran from the creepy (like regenerated body parts including bladders) to conceptually fascinating (like a harp with strings made from lasers and a Lifestraw that kills sinister infectious organisms in water upon contact), over 160 exhibitors at the 4th annual Wired NextFest in Los Angeles this past weekend enthusiastically revealed their visions of the future to receptive nerds of all ages.

But as anyone could guess from such a geeked-out expo, the star crowd-packers were the robots (we’ll make any excuse we can to include them on Cool Hunting). The noggin of the smooth-moves Albert Hubo robot from KAIST, which holds the distinction of being the first walking robot with a face capable of showing expression, bore the eerie, exact resemblance of Albert Einstein courtesy of Hanson Robotics. The Android Twin Robot, in the same electronic vein, was a remarkably true physical clone of the maker’s founder Zou Ren Ti and caused not only double but triple takes. (See some in action in our video from last year here.)

In design, the
Desktop Factory 3D printer garnered the most adulation. With this machine that looks like it came straight from a lab, consumers who have $5,000 to drop on the hardware as well as lots of patience (five hours for a small creation) can design and print actual 3-D objects made from a powder blend of aluminum, nylon and glass. Other attention-grabbing products were the
D30 suit, built with a flexible material that hardens upon impact making it a fave with some soccer players and snowboarders.
CuteCircuit, known for their Hug Shirt that tenses so its wearers can feel the sensation of a real hug, showed off other irreverent but practical innovations like the M-Dress, which turns an outfit into a working cell phone.

The NextFest wouldn’t be all things future without a motley selection of green-friendly entries, like the
Pull Cord Generator by Potenco that’s currently being used in developing countries to power LEDs for lighting but will be offered stateside for applications such as charging MP3 players and cell phones. Interactive Institute, known for its power-aware line, is debuting a clock that talks with your electricity meter to show energy consumption at any time of day.

Until the next NextFest…

“You work so hard, you look at your girl - I know it sounds like she is a horse going in to a race - but you look at her in the room and she looks beautiful,” says Eva Longoria’s stylist Robert Verdi. “But if I’m standing alone in the room, I’m the best looking guy there. I have the best body. And then life happens. In some way a lot of the way red carpet dresses are perceived is by comparison.”

This time, there was no comparison.

Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria dazzled on the red carpet in a gold cocktail length Kaufmanfranco dress covered in nickel and dime sized Swarovski crystals.

“She weighs 96 pounds and the dress has got to be around 30,” he says. “But it looks easy. That’s the pageant girl mind. They know how to smile and move the dress.”

Verdi and Longoria selected the dress months ago, even before her July wedding to basketball star Tony Parker.

“She put it on, looked at me and said “Emmys!”. It was in my office with a flashlight at night,” he says. “We knew it the second she put it on. It felt easy.”

I’m all about the night. Damn all that sunny day bullcrap. Give me a chill ass evenin with a full moon and I’m all to the good. Puma has fed the need for those night owls like myself and presents the Moon Festival Clydes. They are Inspired by the Chinese Moon Festival which takes place every year on August 15th after the lunar calendar. Cop em’ at Mita.

Info.Image: High Snobiety

This weekend I went to a beach party that goes from day to night and onwards into the next morning. Personally, I’ve never been to a huge beach bash before (I can’t even remember the last time I stepped foot on a beach), so I was actually really excited to go. I imagined it to be similar to the beach party scene in Princess Diaries, minus the public humiliation bit of course. As the date approached, I was increasingly thinking about one question- what does one wear to a beach party? Beach wear? But its a party…..supposedly like a nightclub moved to a beach…..how does one recouncil the two?
Some thoughts. As I didn’t plan on getting myself wet or anything, the first thing that popped to mind was a pretty summer dress in bright colors like these two from Free People shown here. Just imagine what a pretty beach pic these dresses would make! And the thin material and relatively cheap price is perfect for the beach, as you wouldn’t have to constantly think about ruining it.
Ultimately though I ended up wearing cropped jeans as the practical side of me pops up, with the fear that skirts may be blown by the wind and it could get messy. You always want to wear pants when things get messy. Of course, shorts work too, but I was also scared of mosquitos too since it was night- I know I think too much! (Both from Forever 21)

Topwise, I suggest a pretty floral top that would also make a pretty picture (left: UO, right: Forver 21).
And if you’re worried about a tan line (as I’d be if I’d went in the afternoon), tubes are a great option like these two from Forever 21 (left) and UO(right). I especially love the white tube, because its so simple but elegant and fun.
Then came shoes. These are the times when sandals/flip flops become your best friend, as heels will sink in and are impractical and sneakers are too hot. Remember to get super cheap ones, as you wouldn’t want to ruin your fancy pair on the rough sandy shores of a beach (above from UO). I bought a pair of flip flops for less than $3 especially for the occasion!
Then came a bag to put all your stuff in. At that moment, I wished I had my white Le Sportsac huge tote with me. But alas it is in Chicago. But really, just stuff everything (mat, sunscreen, food, water, shades, umbrella etc) into a big beach bag like the one above from UO. And just in case you want to head over to the bar for a while and don’t want to bring everything with you, consider bringining a small clutch like this one also from UO to put your valuables in. Leaving valuables anywhere is not a good idea. Plus, it’ll look more chic then holding your wallet around.

And lastly, don’t forget to bring a cardigan. It CAN get cold at night on a beach- think OC beach parties with everyone putting on college sweat shirts and cardis. And that is my whole thought process prepping for this beach party. I know, I think too much. LOL. Hope everyone has a fun weekend as well!

10 days ago I made the grave mistake of squeezing a blackhead on my cheeks. You’d think that I’d know by now after reading countless beauty magazines the beauty commandment that thou shalt not squeeze your pimples/blackheads by yourself. But this time I really couldn’t resist since it feels like that blackhead has been there forever and no matter how much I exfoliate it didn’t look like it was coming out anytime soon. So I gave in- and now I’m still living with the mistake.

I now have a huge red bump on my cheek- after 10 days! So I’ve tried many methods to try to conceal it. I don’t want to wear foundation everyday nor use some really heavy concealer that might block my pores even more and make me break out. Here is what I’ve been through so far…
I first went for my trusty Bare Minerals foundation, using my concealer brush to blend it. The beauty of this of course is that it is minerals so it won’t block your pores and cause more pimples AND it absorbs oil so you won’t look shiny. The downside though is that the coverage is too sheer (and you cannot use more as otherwise it’ll look patchy) the area gets kind of dry and obvious that you’re covering up something.
The next thing I used is the Benefit Galactic Shield because the texture is more creamy (less dry and flaky!) AND has salicylic acid to prevent pimples! Except it only has three shades and the coverage is still not that good and looks kind of obvious. Maybe its just me and my lack fo skills?

Clinique just came up with something similar. I’m thinking of trying it…. anyone tried it yet? And any other suggestions for blemish coverage that won’t cause more pimples??