Black Bohemian

Comfort. I cherish it in clothes, and when I come to think of it - in everything. Spoiled, some call me, but I stick to my preferences. Physical comfort is the base to calm, functionality and let's just admit it, happiness. In clothes, I always seek the equivalent of a homey, cushion-y sofa. Without looking like one, that is. This is a winner: 

Skirt and shirt - Vintage

Vest - borrowed

Shoes - J. Crew

Bag - second hand Nicole Miller

I'm addicted to vests of all kinds - the armpits are free, the back is covered, what more can you ask for? Same goes for long skirts, which require minimum effort. Prickly flats and a textured denim top (very 90s) are worked into this urban look, and the little bamboo bag doesn't make sense, but I just bought it today in the Mission. Not that comfortable perhaps, but very cute. 

Fall musing

I'm in reflective mood. Fall is elusive in California, but elsewhere, I like to imagine, it's already in full swing, with the smell of clementines and broody skies. These are the 5 things I'm going to do this fall. 

1. Get to know Nathan Williams

Nathan Williams is the editor of Kinfolk magazine. He has a blog, where his life looks exactly like the pages of Kinfolk Magazine. Stylish friends, nature moments, photogenic food and his beautiful wife Katie - I want to be you, Nathan. I'll even take the freckles. 

2. Bake Canele de Bordeaux

Tried them once, got hooked immediately. Crispy on the outside, dreamy on the inside, this french treat is beyond words. Hebrew speakers, the perfect recipe is here. 

3. Watch Rectify

The Sundance channel keeps enchanting me. Top of the Lake was magical, albeit lacking some emotional depth. Rectify is both deep and disturbing and beautifully made, faded sun on carefully selected faces and all. Alden Young is a revelation. Abigail Spencer is someone to fall in love with, right away. Only 6 episodes, hopefully I can stretch through fall. 

4. Indulge in a sleeping mask

I've been a sleeping mask devotee for the last 5 years. Moving to silky, pampering ones is what I call maturity. Mary Green, a recent discovery, does them so well, I want to wear them all at once.  

5. Be outside

Julia Nobis in Vogue Australia, by Stephen Ward

I don't spend enough time outside. Who does? Go do it, today. 

Favorite 3: The dominatrix

Fall is here, so they say. It means muted hues, sensible buys, a hint of coats? For me, the possibility of winter always bring back a sense of femininity, the sexy, luscious kind. Summer is for the "girl", in a sundress and sandals. Winter is for the woman. Fall is for a woman who loveד leopard underwear, like me. 

1. Castro leather dress - leather is onli acceptable for fall and winter, as far as I'm concerned. And this is the kid of leather I'd like to wear.

2. Clinique Chubby Stick in Heftiest Hibiscus - I've always loved the name of this product. After trying it, I love the product itself.

3. Intima leopard print underwear - who DOESN'T need a pair of these? I'm a leopard addict, through and through, and my knickers drawer can prove it. 

The nomadic dress

So here's a story you might be bored enough to read: A couple of months ago, I saw a dress on Mango's British website. It was wonderful, screaming my name and teasing me with its embellishment and embroidery. But the British website only ships through Europe, not the US or Israel, and the dress in question, alas, was absent from Mango USA. What a girl to do?

Dress - Mango, shoes - Irregular Choice

I called up a friend in Portugal, a guy - just to be safe, and shipped the dress to his location, together with a bohemian manly scarf as compensation. After days of chasing the package around town and playing catch with elusive Lisbon postal workers, brave Stephan finally got a hold of it and sent it my way. And here it is now - a dream to wear, belted or loose, perfect for California weather and even more perfect with the white sandals nothing else goes with. Lesson learnt? Fashion is all about creativity, indeed, sometimes of th kind that involves international shipping schemes. 

Bohemian Rapsody

So you know how all the taste-makers say they like mixing "high and low" fashion? A vintage jacket with designer boots? This cliche of dressing well have ruled the style book since the 90s, against all odds. I can not afford "high', unless it's a second-hand find. I can certainly score "low", on the highest floor of a department store back in my NYC memories. The result: mixing the unmixable!

Shirt - MICHAEL Michael Kors

Shorts - Urban Outfitters

I never thought I'd like snake print, let along in these hues and in silk. But the tanned fella by the name Michael Kors (somehow, Michael, your diffusion line shirt ended up at a local vintage store!) knows his business - it's a super-flattering number, lingering on the body just so and revealing a hint of cleavage. Paired with embroidered cut-offs from the chain that does everything right, 10$ on sale, you just can't go wrong. 

Back to comfort

Fashion week is over, and I'm back to California, where the sun is shining fiercely and there is no subway, people in suits or tense faces. Relaxation is king, and this leisurely caftan-dress feels like the natural choice for a weekday breakfast. Yes, 11 a.m. 

Dress- Second hand from Beacon's Closet

Glasses - Karen Walker

Overwhelmed by the abundance of this amazing second hand, I decided to buy whatever "jumps" at me from the rack - this dress did. I love how comfortable it is - the cut is so forgiving, and the cotton fabric doesn't cling - I must confess, it's been my lounging outfit since I landed, hence - I just didn't change when going out! The only blast from Fashion Week is the huge, whimsical sunglasses I got from Karen Walker, already a winner with the local Safeway crowd. Thanks, New York! 

My Fashion Week: Days 4-5

When it's 90 degrees outside, you try to make it to all the shows. and stay fashionable on top of that. Days 4 and 5 have been pretty exhausting, not to mention scorching hot and demanding. But I'm wearing heels again (carried in the bag to the venue, worn in a dark alley. 

What I saw: Nanette Lepore. Marc by Marc Jacobs. Mordechai by Ken Borochov. Alon Livne. Smaller events and presentations were the key of these last days, and curiously enough, the mini-hype made them more intimate and memorable. Alon Livne, my fellow Israeli, presented a bold, futuristic collection, Lady Gaga's wheelchair designer sent gagged girls down the runway at the Standard hotel, and Marc... He just knows how to pick he right soundtrack. 

A golden amazon in Mordechai

Alon Livne's beautiful aliens

Waiting for Marc to start

What I wore: high street and designer. For day 4, I went for a mixture of simple things with a little helping of awesome shoes and what turned out to be a very, very handy accessory, a fan - kindly given to me by Fancy Hand Fans. Plus, debuting a great start-up that received so many good reviews on the otherwise unfriendly New York subway: the double necklace! 

Skirt - Forever21, shirt - H&M, shoes - vintage, fan - Fancy Hand Fans

For day 5 I aired the new dress I bought at Beacon's Closet, an amazing find in Brooklyn - See by Chloe, no less, pure silk, accessorized with golden shoes and a heavy chain. And my bag, hiding a pair of flats. Shhh....  

So Fashion Week is over for me - I liked big parts of it, I would've liked it even more if I had friends to enjoy it with me, and I'm most defensively not going to bring heels next time. Platforms, perhaps.