LA Story: Cabana Stripes

There’s nothing like a good cabana stripe. It’s the ultimate stripe for warm weather dressing. My simple column dress, Skylar Belle, is the perfect silhouette to show off these beautiful stripes. The body style reminds me of the narrow cabanas from the early 1900s that Madame Chanel and friends would have as the backdrops to their gatherings for their days on the beach in Deauville. I’m using the smallest of the three stripes, the oxblood colour, to inspire my minimally styled look. A classic bandana headscarf, Amazon, a deep red coral necklace to mimic the verticality of the stripes from my dress.

My everyday watch and trinity bangle bracelet, Cartier and a textured bamboo bracelet, Gona Jewelry, are just enough for me. My thong sandals, Birkenstock Giza, are also linear in feel with their bold patent leather strapping and their cork bottoms work well with the creamy base colour of my dress. I’ve finished my look with my big straw bag, Bohemia Marrakech, for its beautiful, relaxed feel. This look has such an easy carefree vibe and is perfect for a strolling on the beach or through your local farmers market or just sitting at an outdoor cafe in the warm sun watching the world go by.

style-tip: when working with a distinct item we don’t want to bring too much in to distract from it. Spring/Summer casual dressing looks better without the clutter.

LA Story: On the Border 

Border prints are a sure sign that Spring is here and Summer is right around the corner. My little peasant dress, Anna Sui, has the cutest little puff sleeves a lovely cross front bodice and flowy fullish skirt. The sheer fabric is lined but feels light as a feather. I’m not one to wear, cute or sweet, but sometimes the right combination of style and or print gets me. I love the thin vertical stripes with the bold curvy print and the poppy, solid border. This kind of pattern mix print is perfect for a short off-the-shoulder dress because the eye can stay easily focused on the relatively small area of coverage.

I brought in my straw gondolier hat, Landon Hats, to balance with the large border and keep the eye focused and my straw bag, Bohemia Marakkech, works back to the hat. I went with my flat t-strap sandals, Sam Edelman, because the thin leather strapping has more openness on the foot and like the dress, exposes more skin. Also, they don’t create much of a line break between the border print and my foot like a thicker sandal would. There’s a kind of youthful playfulness to a flowy short dress so I took a break and hopped on my neighbors swing for some daytime playtime.

style-tip: consider your choice of sandal when wearing your border prints – the thinner and more open the better.

*please treat your wardrobe well. many people worked very hard to get it to you.