September 2014 issues: more than six chickens

Above are most of the magazines we surveyed. 

September issue mania ensued chez moi last Saturday with BFFF* Karen. In a highly productive four hours, we visually consumed and discussed fifteen different September fashion magazines. Our selection weighed in over thirty pounds for a total of over five thousand pages of ads, trends, fashion editorial, do's and don'ts and proclamations of what's in and what's out. We learned our lesson from our first session two years ago and did preparatory homework by dividing up the issues a week before and bookmarking what we liked and compiling our discussion points before we got together. We take this seriously. Seriously.

What follows is our take on looks we thought would be possible to affordably add to our wardrobes, what looks we could create with what we already have, what we loved just because and even a little DIY (Karen is very crafty). The trends we noticed: fur, feathers and fringe. One could add a lot or a little. But a touch of any of the three f's looks new. And there are lots tailored looks with ladylike details such a top-handled bags, silk flower corsages and gloves. And flats! After a few years of four-inch plus heels, flat shoes are on the models. (However, just because a shoe is flat, does not mean it is urban-street worthy). And coats, which is great for San Francisco. Lots of coats in bright solid colors, bold prints, double-breasted or bathrobe style. A cool looking coat adds instant dash.

Long and lean looks good for Fall. In the right proportion, it could work on anyone.

The sleeveless coat is a new option. Again, it's a long, lean and tailored look. 

Prada and Max Mara showed skinny scarves which is an easy look to duplicate. 

In fact, all the scarves featured for Fall are a little smaller. 

Beautiful leather gloves in great colors.

 Here's a DIY look that caught Karen's eye: fake fur muff. 

Another DIY idea, a silk flower collar adds a pretty detail to an outfit.

Our favorite fashion spread was in Vogue, "Dark Horse" shot in Peru by Mario Testino and edited by Tonne Goodman. The above is not an outfit that either of us could wear, but we sure do love it. 

And I do love this Bottega Veneta skirt. Black turtleneck, great flattering skirt, boots and bold cuff? I could do that! Interesting to note that most of the looks we ripped out to save came from trusty Vogue. 

Leeza, it's so eeezzzy

Judith lounging in Azzedine Alaïa sandals at Barneys, wondering "should I?". 

They look so perfect and easy on her, of course she should and did. 

"Leeza, it's so eeezzzy." So says Judith, my fashionable designer friend on a recent visit from Germany. She has a quick design eye sharpened by experience and a love for visual pleasure. Judith can walk into a clothing store, art gallery, furniture store or flea market and zero-in on the one thing that exhibits qualities of good design. When it comes to clothing, Judith embodies effortless chic; anything that has a beautiful shape or texture and elegant material and that one could wear with sublime ease is for her. She's a good inspiration and shopping partner. We took an afternoon during her stay to visit a few of the Union Square stores.

I'm photographing Judith trying a second pair of Alaïa sandals. These gold-studded raffia sandals were also irresistible. Judith says she plans to wear these for the next ten years. They are so timeless and chic, I'm sure she will.

At Prada, the tropical-themed wallet from the Spring Summer 2014 collection called to Judith. Funny, it's a sophisticated version of a souvenir wallet one would buy when vacationing as a kid. She says it makes her smile, as all souvenirs should.

I found a couple of great things at Zara. Talk about easy! Above is my new Zara blazer. The sleeves are permanently tszujed. You know how often you want that casual dressing-like-a-french-woman look and you keep pushing up your jacket sleeves, but they keep sliding back down? Not with this permanently cool jacket! Perfect for work and after work.

And this Zara blouse is another easy addition. Sheer enough to make it dressy, and long enough to wear casually over skinny jeans. Thanks to Judith, eeezzzy (and elegant) is my mantra when shopping.

Window Licking

I did a little window shopping today on Union Square, or "window licking", the english translation of the vivid french expression -- "la faire de lecher la vitrine".  I probably can't afford what I see or even if I could, I'm not sure I would want to spend the multi-thousands to own it. But that's what's so democratic about shop windows, it's free to look, get inspiration and study the trends in colors, styles and textures.

Chanel today with a retro feel. Still true to black and white, the quilted bag, the camelia and the saucy boater hat. Very Mademoiselle Chanel and very Deauville.

Something about these Chanel mannequins looks oddly old-fashioned. Maybe it's the realistic heads with long hair and the make-up. All the other shop windows had abstracted heads, or no heads at all. 

Hermes always has artful windows. 

This time the theme is folded paper origami horses and geometric shapes. 

Colorful classic Hermes enamel bracelets.

Hermes dressage saddle on an amazing paper horse.

A simple black Hermes shift looks elegant with beautiful accessories and a hit of color. 

Prada is showing florals and pastel colors with a hint of grey to make them more complex and interesting. Miuccia Prada described her Spring 2012 collection as "Sweetness".

Nice mix of blues and a surprising green shoe. 

The Marc Jacobs window on Maiden Lane. Pitch fork?

Now that he has our attention...the Marc Jacobs' window has a county fair theme, complete with a full-size cow. And they're having a good ol' timey contest. Guess the number of blue mints in the giant milk bottle and win a $10,000 gift certificate to the store. Winner to be announced March 3rd*!

*(The results, 74,352 mints. Correctly guessed by "a guy who works down the street". I was only off by 25,000).