Helen's Life & Style

Transitional Dressing: Sleeveless Coat & Menswear Shoes

Post author By Helen Hou
Post date October 30, 2013

Photos: Alexia Niedzielski; Courtesy of vogue.com, tatler.com.

Besides celebrity street styles and models off-duty looks, I’m always looking for outfit inspirations from fashion editors, bloggers and photographers. Alexia Niedzielski, who I deeply admire, is definitely one of them.

Above I featured two outfits of her that are great for this time of the year. These looks combined some of the season’s hottest trends, like oversized coat, color red and menswear shoes.

Teaming trendy pieces with basics (like the simple T-shirts, jeans and leather shorts on her) is an easy and smart way to keep up with trends while standing out as elegantly characterful.

In Chinese: 除了明星和超模的街拍look外，能给我很多灵感的还有一些有自我风格和态度的时尚编辑、摄影师和博主。今天的这一位就是其中的代表–来自巴黎的摄影师和Ever Manifesto杂志的创始人Alexia Niedzielski。

她的这两个look很适合早秋，而且融入了这一季最新的时尚元素像宽松的外套、红色、男士鞋款、未来感的配饰等。把流行的单品和你平时常穿的基本款搭配起来是既容易操作又聪明的搭配方法，彰显时尚品味的同时又不失个人风格。

1. LnA crew neck tee
2. Etro sleeveless funnel neck coat
3. J Brand 915 super skinny jeans
4. Mango metallic folded clutch
5. Jeffrey Campbell Dulles monk strap flats ($50 here)

1. T by Alexander Wang classic tee (great alternative here & here)
2. Etro sleeveless funnel neck coat
3. Topshop leather look shorts (also here; my favorite here)
4. Chanel nail color in ‘Black Satin’
5. Steve Madden troopa boots (also love this pair)
6. Alexander Wang ‘Fumo’ leather wristlet

Besides the hot red sleeveless coat featured above, here are three equally trendy, practical and flattering choices I love:

From left:
Marni sleeveless fil coupé coat (70% off now)
Preen by Thornton Bregazzi wool-crepe biker gilet (alternative here & here)
Missoni knitted sleeveless cardi-coat

Tags Alexia Niedzielski, black clutch, combat boots, fall/winter, grey T shirt, leather shorts, Metallic clutch, Oxford, party outfit, skinny jeans, sleeveless coat, street style, white T-shirt

CLOTHING

Party Time: Dress Up Your Sweaters

Post author By Helen Hou
Post date October 29, 2013

Photos: Jamie Chung & Hailee Steinfeld; Courtesy of instyle.com

When we think of pullovers, we think of a relaxed Sunday stroll or coffee runs, but how about styling them for an event, a sweet date or a party?

Here, Jamie Chung opted for a beloved juxtaposition: stripes and florals. The key is keeping the prints in the same color family. Her cutout booties match the stripes on her sweater while a mirrored clutch adding a futuristic edge. I love a great bodycon dress, which can be restyled as a top or a skirt without the extra bulk.

Hailee Steinfeld’s look is fashionable yet age-appropriate. The signature lips sweater on her is by Markus Lupfer, and I’m obsessed with all the graphic tops he designed. You can style them with a blazer, a leather jacket, a pencil skirt or, for the young ones, a flirty skater skirt like Hailee Steinfeld did above. They will add a playful attitude to any look, formal or casual.

In Chinese: 想到线衫，我们都会把它和休闲场合联系起来。但有没有想过穿着这些“休闲”的单品出席正式活动、派对或者浪漫的约会呢？

Jamie Chung把它和一条数位印花的裙子搭起来，条纹和印花的组合虽然不再新鲜，但每次看到总是让人眼前一亮。搭配上镂空的踝靴和未来感的金属手拿包，时尚中又有自己的态度和个性。一条漂亮的包身裙实用又百变，既可以单穿，又可以当上衣或裙子来做不同的搭配。

Hailee Steinfeld的造型时尚又很符合她的年龄。这件红唇线衫是Markus Lupfer所设计的众多图案中最具代表性的。这个年轻的来自伦敦的德国设计师设计的每件上衣我都非常喜欢，充满趣味，异想天开的图案无论搭配中规中矩的西服、庞克风的皮衣、女人味的铅笔裙或小女孩的伞裙等都别有一番风味。

Dress: Clover Canyon
Sweater: Gap
Booties: Rebecca Minkoff (on sale; also here)
Clutch: Marni (similar here)
Watch: Michael Kors

Sweater: Markus Lupfer (on sale here! similar here & here)
Shirt: J.Crew
Skirt: Tbags Los Angeles (love this one!)
Boots: Stuart Weitzman (my favorite boots finally come in wedges! similar here)
Makeup: Urban Decay Naked2; Marc Jacobs nail lacquer #134

Tags cut out boots, fall/winter, graphic sweater, Hailee Steinfeld, Jamie Chung, knee high boots, Metallic clutch, party outfit, printed skirt, skater skirt, striped sweater

CLOTHING

Fall Perfection: Plaid Shirt & Rich Shades

Post author By Helen Hou
Post date October 28, 2013

Photos: Jessica Alba; Courtesy of glamour.com, starstyle.com.

Plaid, leopard, burgundy, emerald… these classic yet trendy shades and prints are naturally associated with fall/winter. Jessica Alba demonstrate how to style them for day and night:

Luxe texture ups the chic factor. For a day time look, a velvet blazer, calf hair flat, wool fedora and cashmere scarf make a sleeveless shirt and skinny jeans combo perfect for fall. A black tote grounded the rich colors.

For an event or a night out, slip on stilettos and grab a printed clutch, you are good to go. Here, Jessica Alba smartly made the sleeveless shirt cold weather approved simply by warming them up with rich shades, from the deep burgundy on her lips to the emerald-green on her toes.

In Chinese: 豹纹、格子、酒红、墨绿等这些词天然地和秋冬联系在一起。今天来看看Jessica Alba 怎么把这些色彩和图案搭配起来，无论应对时尚派对还是周末出街都优雅自如。

奢华的材质能给基础单品和暗沉色调增加层次、提升质感，比如对于春夏我们常穿的无袖衬衫和牛仔裤的组合，秋冬时加上天鹅绒的西装外套、马毛或牛毛的鞋子包包、羊毛的小礼帽以及喀什米尔的围巾等。如果觉得身上的颜色和图案太多，就像Jessica Alba 一样用一个黑色的大包平衡一下吧。

参加派对或晚上外出时，只要把通勤的平底鞋换成高跟鞋，再加上一个豹纹手抓包和一抹红唇就可以了。但是要有应季感还要注意色调的选择，像Jessica Alba所选的墨绿色的鞋和暗红的唇色就给原本清凉的look增加了温暖度。