Neon Nation

Remember 80's neon? I do. I had a day-glo Body Glove t-shirt and neon pink leggings. I wore them with my tiered denim acid wash skirt and side ponytail. It was not a good look, but I was committed.

 

Since those days, designers have tried a few times to give it a comeback, but it's never really stuck. I assert that it's because neon just really is not flattering. In fact, they are harsh and aggressive. 

Neons are bullies. They scream "LOOK AT ME! I will burn your eyes and harass your retinas, but you will LOOK!" And I'm just not a fan of bullies.

Nicki Minaj

See? Isn't that harsh? I mean, the color of her hair actually hurts to look at. With such treacherous waters out there in the neon sea, I figure I should do my part to offer safe navigation.

Start small. Choose a piece of jewelry, watch, bow, belt, etc. They are easy to integrate into a closet and you can buy them cheaply enough to get rid of them when this trend's (hopefully, short) half-life is over.

Deborah Lippmann "Who Run the World (Girls)" Collection

Alexis Bittar

Adidas

Topshop

J. Crew

Nordstrom

If you are going to wear any highlighter color at all, I feel the best choice by far is pink. While you may risk it bringing out unflattering redness in your skin, it won't make you look nearly as zombie-riffic as yellow or green.

For the love of all that is sacred a pure, please put your neon on a neutral. Navy blue works especially well, but khaki, grey, and most any denim will work very nicely. White is a bit more challenging, as it can increase the harshness of the neon and give you a 'highlighter on printer paper' effect. Someone with medium to deep skintones can pull this off, but I encourage the pale girls to stay away.

J. Crew

If you feel particularly bold, choose a neon shoe or bag.

Vans

Rebecca Minkoff

J. Crew

J. Crew

Wouldn't those Vans look adorable with cuffed skinny jeans? The sandals would work with denim shorts and the flats would look great with a navy skirt.

Wear this with khaki shorts/skirt and boat shoes for a nautical look:

J. Crew

 Tuck this into a navy pencil skirt and pop a blazer over it for work:

Ted Baker

Add a dark denim jacket and a grey tank for date night:

J. Crew

And please, please, please, do not wear multiple neon colors at once. You may end up looking like this:

Dita Von Teese Wants Natural Beauty

So, I don't really know all that much about Dita Von Teese. Probably more than the average person, but that's just because I pay attention to stuff. To me, she is an embodiment of Dolly Parton's famous quip: "Find out who you are and then do it on purpose." She has her styling down to a tee and truly commits to her look.

Take off all her makeup and she's probably a very pretty woman, but lacquer her up and she is a bombshell. This is one thing I love so much about styling: that every woman, no matter how 'average' can find what really works for her and shows her to her best advantage.

This woman is almost 40.

Dita here has her own line of lingerie which goes into the plus sizes and up to a G cup. The little I know about lingerie tells me that going to G is not very extraordinary, but for a celebrity line I think it's pretty decent. She had women of all sizes walk the runway at her show and tweeted: "To set the record straight, my Von Follies lingerie show 'no spray tan policy' means NATURAL skin tones will be represented, pale & dark.''

Fabulous. Severely. I really, really love it. Pale =/= Ugly (or 'pasty').

Beautiful skin and she definitely has lines around her eyes and on her forehead. Awesome. She doesn't appear to be injected with fillers or paralyzers, either.

She's got a sort of Ava Gardner thing happening, and I adore the sharp red nails with half-moon mani. "I've had 2 years to sharpen my claws, mother; Jungle Red!"

Check it: 3 different-sized women wearing very similar garments (i.e. the 'plus size' one is not covered head to toe) and all of them look sexy, confident, and real.

The blonde in the back on the left? A bit heavy in the middle. The brunette next to Dita? Thick thighs. The lady on the right? Hips, baby, hips. Figure flaws? Oh heck no. They all look luscious.

Photos courtesy of JustJared.

Mmmm... Fresh!

I am loving this mint green trend. It's like the refreshing, cold sweetness of a Melona bar on a summer day.

If you haven't had one, you really need to look into it. They are South Korean honeydew melon creme bars and are delightful. Get them at your local Asian market (they are worth the $10 a box).

I'm also loving the return of super lady-like pieces mixed with menswear. So you can imagine my glee at seeing still from the Jonathan Saunders show.

Nothing creates an hourglass figure better than a structured shirt tucked into an a-line skirt. This is my summer uniform- ask anyone. I also adore those sandals with the wee bows. Tres adorable!

Sadly, I haven't yet put my hands on any minty fresh pieces that are perfect for me. So, I am looking forward to adding  splashes with accessories. First on my list:

 Essie 'Mint Candy Apple'. Just the right amount of blue to tone down the yellow in my skin and the perfect touch of green to make it fresh and young.*

Asos belt

Minty penny loafers

Mint looks great with lilac

Wear your mint with:

All of your neutrals, especially: khaki, white, grey, navy
Other tertiary colors like: turquoise, coral, orange, fuchsia




*a full-size bottle of Flowerbomb Bombilicious lotion to the person who sends me this color.

Geeky Nails

There are a few things for which I am a massive sucker:

-animals
-shiny things
-figure skating
-old hollywood
-nail polish
-books

When any of these items combine, I go into a tizzy. That's probably why I am loving ladyflash's post on nail polishes inspired by A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. They are also sparkly.

Link Love

I've been reading a lot of 2001 recap posts recently, but I have just come across my favorite:

My friend ladyflash wrote a truly awesome 2011 recap. I love her pictures, and the fact that she chooses really interesting polishes. Plus, she has a major jones for glitter and shiny things and we know how I feel about that...

Seriously, she is unpretentious and has amazing cuticles.

Fully Loded (Where My Geeks At)

I need one of my lovely nail-obsessed friends to try this. It looks brilliant and clever, yet tricky to execute. Apparently, you swipe on this polish then wave the be-magnetted cap over your nail and a seriously cool design appears.

I'm looking at you, ladyflash...