Fashion and Motorcycles

Last Saturday...yeah, I know, it was a while ago...LCS Designs got to visit two fantastic events; one was the launch/preview party for OC Fashion Week, and the other was the second annual Karlson Tea Party put on by the Comune in Newport.

The OC Fashion Week preview took place during the early afternoon on a scorchingly hot day outside the Anaheim White House. Models milled around, showcasing designer looks from some fresh faces, offset by strong makeup, big hair and gigantic nails. Personally, I wasn't sure about the look. It was something like an overdone mashup of the lux of Laguna and the...well...the not so lux of Santa Ana. This was just a sneak peek though, so hopefully everything will pull together and the launch next spring will showcase a truly unique and inspiring Orange County look. I'm still excited about what could come out of this initiative. The launch itself was an intimate affair and Alex and I had plenty of fun milling around and enjoying the first murmurings of an OC fashion scene NOT sponsored by a giant mall.

(Me, sipping much needed water outside the White House's West Wing)

(The beautiful White House. Alex had never been there so we got to escape the heat and explore inside for a little bit. J'adore!)

After a relaxing afternoon snacking at Francoli's on the Circle and browsing through Italian antiques, I headed home to get ready for the party Frank Delgadillo, one of my mentors for LCS Designs (and a truly fantastic dude), was throwing for his brand, the Comune. Derek had challenged me to step outside of my uniform of skinny jeans, black boots and an oversized blazer so five to seven outfits later I came up with the following:

You can't really tell from the picture (my apt is notorious for BAD LIGHTING - and no, closing the blinds would NOT have helped), but that's a 1960s mesh bathing suit coverup worn over and LCS silk slip. The earrings are shells I got at a street market in Maui and the shoes are Aldo from London.

Bracelet mashup: I basically took a bunch of broken necklaces and random chains and other junk and shoved it all on my wrist. If you look on the left you can see the anchor charm from one of the necklaces.

The strap on these shoes is meant to go around the ankle twice, but after wearing them out like that once I realized that it restricted all movement and made me walk like I was on stilts. No good. So I rashly cut off the buckles completely and made a side tie fastening instead. What do you think?

I think it was a success :)

The Karlson Tea Party was a celebration of the motorcycle as art and about 200 people were there when Derek and I arrived, milling around chatting, perusing and in general carrying on. We hung out for a while, checked out the art and chatted up the Comune boys - some of the coolest, chillest, nicest and cutest guys I've met in a looooooong time if you don't mind tattoos - before heading home. Very good night.

My friend Billy posted a video of the night on the Comune website. Check it out and the Comune collections here: http://thecomune.com/2010/09/comunes-second-annual-karlson-tea-party-video-edit/

Btw, the guy in the poncho is my favorite. I shook his hand that night and I now want to be his best friend forever. Whoever can pull off a poncho like that and still look totally badass is definitely someone worth knowing.