Gold Rush

The teams have been selected, the athletes are hard at work, everyone involved dreams in colour – one shiny, metallic colour in particular… Yep, Olympic Fever has officially set in! With about one calendar month until the Games begin, the Olympics are practically on our doorsteps, and as both a Brit and an athlete, I have been feeling particularly inspired and filled with Olympic spirit recently.

There are a lot of preconceptions as to what Olympic spirit really means, but for me, it has always symbolized strength, power, and vivacity. It’s the radiance of the culmination of a dream, an almost spiritual power and energy that translates to an aura of near-divinity. This root concept of the Olympic spirit got me thinking about the root of the Games themselves: the Greek origins of the Games and their supposed deific progenitors, Heracles and Zeus. Visions of Greek goddesses dancing in my mind soon tempted me to honour the spirit of the Olympics in a far more pretty way than with neon sportswear and ‘sneaker wedges’. So, this season, go Greek! Forget about the red, white and blue and show your support for our athletes in the only colour that matters to them – gold.

Get the Midas touch with these pieces that could have been unearthed from Vesuvius. Privileged Alexander Coin Bracelet, Privileged Lion Cuff, Carolee 40^th Anniversary Collection Panther Coil Bracelet, Kenneth Jay Lane Gold Coin Necklace, Fallon Classique Pearl Cuff.

Laura Hunter-Thomas,

Ici Fashion

Sloaney Style: The Blueprint

In a similar vein as last week’s article, today we shine the spotlight on another facet of classic British style - that of the Sloane Ranger. This style of dress makes ‘preppy’ seem like a dirty word. The lifestyle of the Sloane is one that we probably all envy: country ‘houses’ (read: mansions), hot dates to accompany us to polo matches and point-to-points, and lots of champagne. While not all of us can look forward to divot-stomping, we can certainly all look the part. Hey, don’t knock it. Hang out at Bluebird and you might just catch the eye of that Nacho lookalike…

The vibe: affluent, groomed, put-together

The key word: polished

Poster girls: the Duchess of Cambridge and Pippa Middleton, Delfina Blaquier, Millie Mackintosh and Kimberley Garner (of Made in Chelsea fame)

Key trends: country and chalet chic (only on location, of course), ‘preppy’ (think Ralph Lauren, Jack Wills etc.), tweed, little make-up, glossy side-parted hair, Louis Vuitton (yes, it’s a trend), equestrian

Essential pieces: skinny jeans, jodhpurs or jodhpur-style leggings, riding boots, blazers, pashminas, Louis Vuitton (handbags and luggage), Hermes scarves, cable knit sweaters, flip flops, sunglasses, quilted jackets, anything Barbour, gilets

Bun or ponytail? Either is acceptable, as long as it’s masterfully messy-yet-polished

Heels or flats? Both are utilized. If heels, nude or black pumps. If flats, riding boots or French Sole ballet flats

Sloanglish: “rah” (a teasing term for a young Sloane), “babe” (used by girls to greet friends of either sex, or a partner), “hun” (used by guys to greet female friends), “ledge” (short for ‘legend’; used to describe how cool something is: “That’s ledge”)

Common quirk: Sloanes are known to greet friends with a kiss of each cheek, French-style, regardless of sex

Laura Hunter-Thomas,

Ici Fashion

How To Keep Your Hair Safe During Summer

When the temperatures rise, you can't help but want to spend time outdoors. However, all that nice weather can wreak havoc on your locks. Between the sun and the dry air, your strands can go from luscious to dull in no time; not to mention the sun can fade your color quite quickly. But you don't have to miss out on all that summer sun; you can protect your coif with a few simple preventative measures.

Hat Hair

Now is the time to don that big, floppy hat you've always wanted. Not only will the hat shield your neck and face from the sun, but it can keep your hat safe, as well. The sun is known for sucking the life and color out of hair, so keeping it shaded can prevent that and have you looking oh-so-stylish.

Swimming Sense

Taking a dip is one of the advantages of the summer. Problem is, chlorine is anything but hair-friendly. The chemical can make your hair dry, remove the color from it and can even leave it green! The best prevention is to don a swimming cap. Caps keep your hair safe from the chlorine, but may not always be so ideal.

You never want to wash your hair before you swim. Doing so removes the oils from your hair and scalp that can protect it from the chlorine. Instead, apply neem oil to your locks before swimming. Then, rinse it with water immediately after leaving the pool and go take a shower when you can. Wash your tresses with shampoo that contains ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid. This shampoo removes additives from your hair, which can prevent it from doing damage.

Moisture Musts

The biggest factor you have to contend with in the summertime is keeping your locks moisturized. You don't want to be accused of having straw hair, so you'll need to infuse your mane with some serious hydration. Masks can infuse your hair with needed moisture and leave it looking shiny and healthy. If you want to make your own, mix ½ of an avocado with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Apply the mixture to your hair and let it sit for about 20 minutes, then rinse out.

When you wash your hair, make sure to only scrub the scalp. Deep conditioning your hair once a week can also keep your hair looking healthy. Additionally, use creamy shampoos, which are typically more conditioning than other types.

Bottom line is you always want to look your best, no matter what the season. But you can keep your hair looking healthy and chic with these summertime tips.

Heather Vicchioni,

Ici Fashion

Your Shoes Say More Than You Might Think

You may have heard that clothes make the woman, but did you know your shoes have a lot of influence, too? According to a study conducted by the University of Kansas and Wellesley College, you say a lot about yourself by the type of kicks you wear.

Not only does your footwear tend to reveal your gender, age and income, but it can also relay to others details of your personality, such as if you are clingy and insecure in relationships, or if you are relaxed and laid-back.

For instance, functional and practical shoes are typically worn by friendly, agreeable folks. Uncomfortable shoes are often worn by calm people, but ankle boots often grace the feet of gals who are a little more aggressive.

Of course, this study isn't 100 percent accurate – sometimes a relaxed chick likes the look of ankle boots and will go out and rock them with the best. However, common generalities were prevalent in the study and made many scratch their heads.

For example, according to the study, folks who are on the anxious and attached side when it comes to relationships tend to wear shoes that are well-kept and newer looking because they seem to care what people think of them. Contrarily, the opposite can be said for people with more laid-back personalities.

The shoe colors people tend to pick also says something about them. You could probably guess that people who wear red or brightly-colored shoes are often more outgoing and like attention. Folks who don nude or black shoes are typically on the reserved side and don't want to be the center of attention as much.

Regardless of what this study says, you go ahead and wear whatever makes you happy. You don't have to stick to certain colors and styles because you feel like they reflect your personality. If you see a hot pair of red stilettos that are screaming at you, go ahead and slip those babies on – even if it is in the comforts of your bedroom.  

Heather Vicchioni,

Ici Fashion

 

Quintessential British Style: What It Is and How to Get It

As some of you may have realized from reading my post on the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, I am a Brit abroad, so while I wouldn’t call myself an expert, I think I’ve got a pretty decent handle on the essence of Brit style. London Fashion Week is known for the innovation, creativity and quirkiness of its designers, and British street style is no different. Below, the essential guide to Alexa Chung-worthy awesomeness.

The vibe: quirky, cool, a melting pot of influences and themes

The key word: creativity

Poster girls: Alexa Chung, Mary Charteris, Susie Bubble, Kate Moss (duh)

Key trends: colour-blocking (usually with loud, clashing Pantone shades like hot pink and cool mint) or bright colours, festival chic, prints (clashing, natch), geek-chic glasses with thick black rims, brogues, shocking hair (blue, ombre, platinum), menswear-as-womenswear

Essential pieces: leather trousers/leggings, dark skinny jeans, boots (heeled or flat, make them lace-ups for extra points; also, riding boots), a block-colour piece (blue trousers, orange jacket, etc.), scarf (Hermes-style, ethnic print or pashmina), motorcycle jacket, something with military influences or khaki, eccentric shades (heart-shaped, crazy colours, thick rims), brogues, light denim (distress optional), black tights

Bun or ponytail? Bun (usually a topknot)

Heels or flats? Flats. Boots, lace-up shoes of any kind, brogues, Converse, Keds and Dr. Martens are all common.

iPod rotation? Arctic Monkeys, Adele, Muse, Coldplay, Radiohead, U2, Goldfrapp, Chemical Brothers, Florence + The Machine

National treasures: HRH (God save the Queen!), Adele, Susan Boyle, Diversity, Kate Moss, Chris Hoy, Rebecca Adlington, Tom Daley, Jess Ennis, Alexander McQueen

Laura Hunter-Thomas,

Ici Fashion

How To Look Instantly Thinner, Richer, and More Glamorous – or, Picking The Right Sunglasses

If there is one item – just one – that summer mandates you buy, it’s a pair of sunglasses. “Ah, easy,” I hear you say. Not so. Sunglasses are probably one of the least thought-about purchases we make (“Oh, sure, Wayfarers are cool,” is probably about as much thought as we put into it), but the truth is, picking out a pair of shades can make or break your style. Even more crucially, the right pair of sunglasses can make you appear slimmer, more sophisticated and perhaps even more affluent. Here’s how to get it right.

The first thing you should bear in mind when choosing your sunglasses is their shape. With sunglasses, as with eyebrows, it’s important to choose the shape that flatters your face and bone structure. For those who have no idea what I’m talking about with the latter, if you have an angular face, you should shape your brows into a smooth curve, whereas if you have a rounder face with less obvious bone structure, a more angular arch will suit you better. In the same vein, contrast is key in flattering your face: if you have a round, oval face, and/or less obvious bone structure in the face, choosing square framed sunglasses will lend flattering and slimming angles to your face. If you possess a stronger jaw line and/or more prominent cheekbones, choosing a pair of shades with round lenses with soften your angles and flatter you the best.

Cool Aviators

Cat Eyes

Square Sunglasses

So, with shape, contrast is the key to choosing sunglasses. Choosing shade, on the other hand, is the

complete opposite: sunglasses that match your complexion and hair colour are perennially the most flattering. So, blondes, choose lighter ‘almond’ coloured or light brown sunglasses, and stay away from black, opaque or dark brown shades; brunettes and raven-haired beauties, spring for the dark chocolate and classic black pairs.

And there you have it! Welcome to the VIP room.

Laura Hunter-Thomas,

Ici Fashion

How to do elegance with edge – tweeds and twinsets need not apply

As any committed Anglophile will know, we Brits enjoyed a four-day holiday from the 2^nd to 4^th of June in honor of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. And it seems it’s not just the nationals celebrating: style editorials inspired by HRH have been popping up on sites all over the American web (and yes, before you ask, they’re reputable. Even Net-a-Porter’s joined the fray). At first, I was a little baffled. The Queen is many things, but a style icon? I’m not so sure, old chap. I dismissed it at first, thinking it a quaint extension of the seemingly ever-pervasive American affection for all things English. But the more email subscriptions from high-end retailers I opened, the more high-fashion sites I surfed, the more prestigious magazines I read – the more it became apparent that for whatever reason, this obsession with regal style was becoming, in fact, more a trend than a passing fancy.

Doina Ciobanu at Lookbook

It took me a little while to ‘get it’, but an illuminating article in Harper’s Bazaar UK soon gave me a hint as to the reason for Liz’s new street cred. The Queen’s manner of dress, while perhaps not the haute blend of S&M and living art installation commanded by the likes of Carine Roitfeld, is indeed ladylike and elegant, the ‘poster style’, if you will, for a woman who is unafraid to be feminine. An extension of the sweetly girlish and somewhat saccharine styles seen bubbling down the spring/summer runways, it might seem a turn-off to today’s powerful, successful, ruler-of-her-own-kingdom woman, but on the contrary, this is not the look for Disney Princess 2.0, but for a strong woman possessed of her own power. In fact, this may be the only character able to get away with white lace pencil skirts and strings of pearls. Irony – that elusive blend of bad taste and laissez faire hauteur – and its inherent contrast are the true markers of great personal style – as Diana Vreeland said, “Too much good taste can be boring”. Bad taste is what’s interesting. Only the woman who is so in command of her world and assured of her own assets can take the reign(s), pun intended, of this style and make it fly.

Linda Tran N at Lookbook

Of course, twinsets and pearls and mid-height block heels all together are never going to look modern (that’s too much bad taste. Your spicy Bloody Mary shouldn’t be a microdermabrasion treatment for your throat). It’s all about the twist – elegance with an edge. Preppy or sophisticated elements should always be paired with something more ‘street’: Upper East Side lady-who-lunches meets Carine. It is neither a street style extravaganza nor a simply preppy, ‘classic’ style, but altogether something more mysterious and far more intriguing; infinitely refined. For example: a pair of cropped orange-popsicle pants paired with a short, structured white silk tee and a navy, white and gold costume-gem necklace as at home in the Hamptons as at a black tie event. Or a formfitting black top with flattering diagonal chiffon draping in the front offset by peg-leg peony-print trousers in pale blues. Complete either visage with a pair of sky-high, pointy-toed black patent pumps, a simple, slender gold watch, and Muffy, you’ve got yourself an upgrade.

Laura Hunter-Thomas,

Ici Fashion

NAMASTE (vacation series)

WHY: As women, we all know what helps us unwind, what rescues us from the stresses of our daily lives – pampering. And most of the time, we don’t get enough of it, so the very least we can do to help ourselves and everyone around us (“as above, so below”, and all that. What? I’m getting into the meditative mindset here!) is to use our vacation time productively – by retreating to that most rare of places where pampering is prevalent: a spa.

WHERE: Blue Lagoon, Iceland. The Blue Lagoon geothermal spa might well be deemed a miracle of nature, the very purveyor of bliss. Condé Nast Traveller readers voted Blue Lagoon the best worldwide medical spa, and for good reason.

WHAT: At 37-39 degrees Celsius, the hot, mineral- and algae-rich water will soothe dry skin and aching muscles, as well as easing tensions in the mind and spirit. The best treatment here (as if you even needed one) is, without question, the Silica Salt Glow and Massage, which delivers all the mind- and body-purifying elements you could possibly wish for: a therapist will polish your back and limbs with clarifying silica mud as you float in the hot thermal waters. Welcome to Cloud Nine. Here’s your room key.

IT’S FASHION, DAHLING: Seeing as you’ll be spending a lot of time in the Waters Of Bliss (AKA the medicinally relaxing hot lagoon waters), you won’t need to worry too much about your wardrobe. Be sure to bring a good swimsuit (see our previous ‘Tahitian Trip’ post for good suggestions on the perfect bathing suit for your body) – we especially love the Miraclesuit Jena One Piece Swimsuit from Nordstrom, available in summery white or ever-flattering black. Just to reiterate our love for this incredible piece: a miracle suit that everyone will want to put on their shopping lists, this suit helps you look ten pounds (and one whole dress size!) slimmer instantly, while comfortably holding you in and shaping you wherever you need a little extra help. Icelandic street style is known for its eclectic nature, so make your Miraclesuit work harder by pairing it in the evening with the Motel Kaleidoscope Betty Skirt, available from our store, for a great, casual look for dinner. For a little more polish, toss on the Love Shrimp Twill Long Sleeve Wrap Dress (also available from our store) with the Lizzie Fortunato Desert Modern Necklace. So simple; so chic!

Miraclesuit Jena One Piece Swimsuit, Love Shrimp Twill Long Sleeve Wrap Dress

Motel Kaleidoscope Betty Skirt, Lizzie Fortunato Desert Modern Necklace

Laura Hunter-Thomas,

Ici Fashion

Savvy Tips to Keep Your Sweating a Secret

When it's hot outside you can't help but sweat. However, pit stains are anything but sexy. You can't exactly sit inside in the air conditioning all day, but you also don't want to let the world see you sweating. Fortunately, a variety of tricks are available that allow you to still look cute and keep that sweating under wraps.

Fabrics

The type of fabric you wear can make a big impact on the visibility of your sweat stains. It probably makes sense that the lighter and more breathable the fabric is, the less you will sweat. For this reason, you probably think cotton is the way to go; however, you would be wrong. It's true that this fabric is breathable, but it makes sweat stains show up excessively. Instead, go with a cotton and rayon blend – it is still breathable, but your stains won't show up as easily. Fleece and velour are also great at hiding those unsightly stains.

Color

Color is the best way to hide those pit stains. The lighter in color the fabric is, the more visible the sweating is. Instead of choosing those light pastels that will make your sweat stains take center stage, go with dark colors, instead. For instance, black, maroon and Navy blue are ideal in keeping those sweat marks a secret.  

Patterns

Patterns on fabric can be a girl's best friend when it comes to hiding sweat marks. When you think about it, those patterns are quite distracting, so sweat stains are likely the last thing that will be noticed. Go with flowers or a similar graphic pattern to hide those stains. And one of the best parts of wearing these patterns is that you aren't limited to just wearing dark colors; you can wear bright clothing as long as they feature patterns.

Keeping yourself looking cute and stylish is a must in the summer. With these handy tricks, you have no excuse not to look your very best.

Heather Vicchioni,

Ici Fashion