i want to smell like a candle...

i want to smell like a (malin + goetz) dark rum candle. weird, i know. before i go on, i want to tell a story.

last week, i was in the bed, bath and beyond in tribeca picking up some necessities (salad tongs, tea lights, 7th generation dish soap and hanging hooks), when i stumbled upon the candle aisle. i knew we needed some candles for the apt, so i ventured slowly into the aisle, thinking... maybeeee i could learn to love yankee candle factory like most americans. i walked up to a banana bread candle, thinking "banana bread is one of my favorite things on this planet...". oh boy was i mistaken. every candle i sniffed made me gag. how can people buy those awful things? i mean frosted pumpkin? seriously?

okay moral of the story is: antonia cannot handle scented yankee candles. however, i am head over heels in love with (malin + goetz) candles. both the cannabis and dark rum are heavenly. deep, dark and just perfect for me. i bought the soap version of the dark rum this wknd at earnest sewn in meatpacking, and i have been lathering my body in the scent every night. is that weird? yes. do i care what you think about my obsession? no.

also, the other night when i was at aerospace (for aeroboxing), i used malin + goetz products in their shower. they are just wonderful for face, hair and body. check out the store here:
(MALIN+GOETZ) apothecary
177 Seventh Ave
between 20th and 21st Streets
New York New York 10011
+1 212 727 3777

here is a list of places to find the products in the us, and internationally. oh also, they have free samples on their website HERE.
 

shazaaaam.

want to make a statement this upcoming fashion week? go for the gold. ((i shouldve posted this during the olympics - that wouldve been far more appropriate)). here is nars' new fall collection with isolde and codura. two different shades of gold, which you can blend or use to your liking depending on your mood. 

photo: beauty.feber.se 

fri.

good morning. off to volunteer ny fashion week. im so excited to get my hands dirty, even if it means doing coffee runs. working in the chaos of fashion wk should be a lot of fun. until then, here is a pic i fell in love with on stockholm street style this morning. this guy can really pull of purple chinos. and they're filippa k. i adore the mix of fall and summer with the big knitted sweater and the summer-ish white vans. the transformation into autumn clothing is beginning...

filippa k.

ive already mentioned my obsession for filippa k, the swedish designer who has been dominating the swedish fashion scene for years. well castor and pollux is another fav ny store that carries some swedish brands like rodebjer, acne and filippa k. and whyred is soon to come.
sorry about the photo. love the sweater though. it was a wonderful knitted wool and mohair top with short sleeves.



here is your ny mag info on the store: castor and pollux.

j.crew boozes & scores.

never thought id have a entry titled "j.crew boozes"...but hey, there is a first for everything.

so the new j.crew store just opened in tribeca, and it is pretty much...well...badass. i love the fact that they kept the raggedy old look of the liquor store in tune with the vintage business casual looks they put on the racks. im a big sucker for vintage looking stores and restaurants. it's the flea-market lover in me. oh, i admit i used to sit for hours and look at all the archival items from my new england all-girl's prep school. so here ya go. some pics courtesy of a continuous lean's blog and photographer brian berman.

gant x the sartorialist.

preppy swedish (maybe french now?) owned company gant has a brilliant new cross-site with scott schuman (the sartorialist). they picked the quintessential new yorkers, and then offered them the opportunity to mix and style with gant's fall/winter 2008 collection. the outcome was brilliant. 

my favorite photo is of luke. 

and my favorite answer comes from cynthia: 

What is your favorite place in New York City?
My favorite place in New York City has to be at JFK airport, after you’ve cleared security and exactly when you are in the food court
getting coffee and suddenly you recognize that there are swams of people surrounding you who are on their own paths and may or
may not have anything to do with your own immediate life. When New York City dissolves into the World. 

fifth avenue shoe repair.

in 2004, lee cotter and astrid olsson started the progressive swedish brand fifth avenue shoe repair named after an old shoemaker shop in london. 4 years later, their clothes are still shocking the design and fashion world with their brilliance in craftsmanship and tailoring. the pieces are inspired by architecture and design, while bringing that old world flair into the mix.

lee cotter in his own design.

the shop in stockholm is found on Bondegatan.

in NYC:   fifth avenue shoe repair is available at Bird, 220 Smith Street, Brooklyn, and at Opening Ceremony, 35 Howard Street. 

also visit: www.shoerepair.se to see the collections. 

cowboys & glamazons?

whoever said texans arent cutting-edge stylish? when you think dallas, im sure you think: southfork ranch, blonde hair teased-to-the-max and some jewel toned chiffon shoulder-padded dresses. yeah, the word "dallas" probably brings back memories of the early 90s. well, after having lived in the city for 4 years, i can do nothing but disagree. i sigh when people choose to play these common misconceptions over and over in their heads. visit to dallas and see for yourself. sure, we have the glam squad sorority girls, the 30thousand dollar millionaires driving their leased lambos and a bunch of preppy deer killing boys from georgia dressed in camo hats and cabela sunglass haulers (look it up), but really, dallas is starting to gain recognition as the fashion capital of the south. 

and refinery29 paid homage to a texan fashion starlet today. little junior in high school Jane Aldrige of trophy club, texas (yes it exists - i used to drive by there on my way to visit my horse) has an amazing blog called sea of shoes

check it out. i love it.

photo: sea of shoes.

cut it out.

love the look of these cut out loeffler randall (that i spotted at earnest sewn in meatpacking) booties with a pair of stovepipe skinny jeans and a beaded vest (like this one i spotted at zara) over a plain white or black tee. very rocker chic.

common projects.

in the spring some time, i blogged about a pair of grey common projects. well, my roomates friend came home with a pair yesterday from steven alan in a light beige perfect for fall. well before the slush starts to fall. here they are.
you can find them at gargyle.com and revolveclothing.com.

dig.

a couple entries ago, i blogged about toy watches. well this past wknd i fell in love with a friend's swedish tritoni watch. im thinking about having a friend back in sweden ship it to me, because i cant seem to find any american retailer. hm what color? i dont know if i like the green stripe or the purple heart better. or a plastic? dunno. wish they had a black face and a blue band or vice versa. 

messy ballerinas.

lykke li

a couple posts ago, i mentioned lykke li's influence on swedish style. well here is an article that proves it. the only thing is that refinery 29 doesnt pay tribute to the song siren's style as i did.

 

lindex.

loving the swedish company lindex's line by caroline winberg for fall. love those thigh high socks with the brown boots and plaid high waist skirt. i want i want. also, that blazer is amazing looking with the sailor buttoned high waist trousers.

photos: modefeber.se

bikes.

with the increase in bike riding in nyc (like summer streets), some people have taken the city's bike racks to a new artistic level. the ny times did a great article about it here.

i love the puppy dog.

go buy...

go buy lykke li's album that was released in the us today:

this swedish girl is unbelievable. her style has been recreated all over sweden. 

grand life.

have i mentioned GrandLife's new york city fashion feature on swedish designers? you can find it here.

the whole website has some great swedish inspired websites: hereeeee.

check out whyred:

disappointed.

whoa. gilt groupe is having a sample sale of filippa k for men today. dont get me started on how badly i want a sample sale for women. filippa k has always been one of my favorite swedish designers. their collections are simple yet sophisticated.

when i was in stockholm, i stopped by their showroom at NK, and i picked up their latest look book. i also fell in love with these suede burgundy high tops they had.

but overall, i am in lovvvve with filippa k's fall/winter collection. check it out here.

target lover.

i just arrived to beantown (boston) - my hometown - to pick up all my things and drive to nyc on friday. so what does tomorrow hold? target and home goods! two of my favorite stores. well home goods can fail at times, but most of the time it is a sure hit. as for target, there is nothing but love. everything in one location? i lived on target during my college years. as for now? there is no target in nyc. well brooklyn and nj but you're talking to a lazy soul.

so just read on wwd.com that target's profits droped 7.6 percent but the sales rose (thanks to new store expansion). so what will i be buying tmrw at target. um paper towels and other household products including the necessities and shelving etc.

meh, dunno if im feeling the richard chai for the target brand. i sort of dig this bubble skirt but royal blue in polyester? with a green shirt? hello overdose jewel tones! ick. but i always pick up some fruit of the loom men's crew neck t-shirts for about 6 dollars (for 4 shirts).

news from gbc.

as i may have mentioned before, ive done several reports on the polo ralph lauren corporation in my years at SMU. my favorite was a research project investigating their ability to jump on the "luxury for less" bandwagon. well, im happy to report that j.c. penney seems happy with their american living line (which is backed by polo's global brand concepts). while they reported some losses in earnings in the 2Q, j.c. penney still seems very pleased with the brand concept in their stores. the company plans to make some price changes to the line in order to soothe today's consumer.

“We still think it’s a billion-dollar brand as it develops,” said Ullman, noting Penney’s would be buying more product across-the-board from the Global Brand Concepts division for this coming spring than last spring. “We’re very satisfied that, for the first season, it was a good opportunity.”

settling.

sorry. once again i apologize for not blogging consistently. but im finally settling into my nyc apartment and big apple lifestyle. i have bruises, sore muscles and scrapes from my three ikea trips and endless furniture building. however, somehow i have survived. and in the last day, i got my hair done and i have been able to sit down and relax. 

so my sister just got back from a diving expedition in the british virgin islands, where she studied with a college professor from Texas Tech. i was flipping thru WWD's new website this morning, and i figured why not share some nautical inspiration from one of their slideshows. yes, i know summer is almost over, but who says we have to change gears completely to autumn's trends. let's enjoy the stripes and anchors of summer's clothing a little bit longer. here are my 2 fav's.

itw by claude brown

nautical jumpsuit by abaete