clothing – WineFashionista

An Ultimate Girls Summer Weekend in Wine Country

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I’ve been on at least a dozen girls weekends. The destinations are always great: New York, Palm Springs, Chicago, Miami, the North Carolina mountains. But I’d not done a girls trip to Napa Valley wine country. I’m not talking over the top 5-star accommodations and 3 star Michelin restaurants; we were more budget minded (we’d rather have money for shopping). We ate and drank well, and even found a nice place to stay that was less than $200 per night (thanks Priceline!)

You probably don’t think of downtown Napa as a destination for style or shopping. People used to bypass Napa on their way to winery tasting rooms and St. Helena. Well things have changed. Now Napa is a must stop for great dining, wine tasting and shopping. Read more

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A Must See – Balenciaga and Spain

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This weekend, the Balenciaga and Spain retrospective opened at the De Young Museum in San Francisco. Cristobal Balenciaga, a Spanish designer, was based in Paris, although clearly influenced by the art and culture of Spain. It’s worth the trip to the De Young to see it, from now until July 4, 2011. Even Anna Wintour came to San Francisco to pay homage.

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SHOP – Lanvin Mania at H&M

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This is going to be THE fashion event of the year. At 8 am ET on Saturday, November 20, fast fashion retailer H&M opens the doors to hoards of fashionistas who will snap up every single piece of the Lanvin for H&M collection. If you are lucky enough to live near one of H&M’s flagship stores (NYC, San Francisco) you can wait in line for your chance to grab no more than two of the same item. I’m bummed that I will not have that chance, to buy a couple pieces of Lanvin for the masses. I predict the stores will be cleaned out within hours. OK I could drive up to SF early tomorrow morning and stake out a place in line. But it’s cold, and it might rain, and I’d have to leave home about 5 or 6 am to get a good spot in line. Even then…

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SHOP – The Agony of Defeat, Project Runway-style

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His pain is palpable, his dream crushed. On Thursday’s finale part 1 of Project Runway, Michael C’s elimination for a spot to go to New York Fashion Week is the most gut-wrenching of any over the past 8 seasons of the show. Whether or not you thought he should have been chosen doesn’t matter. I think we all cried a little bit with him. But man, that was tough to watch. Remember the open to ABC Wide World of Sports, where the ski jumper dramatically crashes off the ramp and into the crowd. Well now we have a replacement – Michael’s total breakdown on the runway and in the backroom. Seems many viewers thought Gretchen should have been auf’ed and I agree. WTF. Her collection isn’t just granola, it’s downright dowdy. Whatever. We all know Mondo will win, or will PR/Lifetime just screw with our minds on that too? What…

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SHOP – Sarah Pacini knits and Crea Concept

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It’s always so much fun to discover a new designer or line of clothing. I just came across the Sarah Pacini line (from Belgium) and I just love it! Knits are the focus, and the shapes and construction are very architectural. They’re easy to wear and flattering. Moderate price point, so one piece won’t break your bank account, but you’ll get so much wear out of it. The other line is the French company Crea Concept. A similar aesthetic as Sarah Pacini. Knits featured here too. Great layering pieces and easy and comfortable to wear. What’s fabulous about both lines is that they are unique — and not so widely available that you’ll see lots of other women wearing it. No doubt you’ll get a lot of compliments wearing these tops, dresses, bottoms.

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SHOP – Atelier at Robindira Unsworth

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One of the hottest jewelry designers around happens to be in wine country. Robindira Unsworth’s studio is based in Petaluma, CA (Sonoma Co.). Her jewelry was just featured on the cover of The New York Times Style Magazine and also in the editorial feature. But Robindira made it big time when her jewelry was worn by the model on the cover of this year’s Sports Illustrated. Happily I can say I knew her when. I met Robindira at Wine Women & Shoes three years ago. That lead to shooting a feature of her for In Wine Country. Now you can shop at her studio. She’s just opened the Atelier at Robindira Unsworth and oh is it ever stocked with goodies! Lots of great scarves, the most beautiful leather jackets from Blur, and tees, cozy sweaters and fab leather bags from Calleen Cordero — all lines that Robindira just loves. And…

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