Oakridge Style

Brad and Angelina’s jewelry line, Madonna for Dolce & Gabbana, Lara Stone for Louis Vuitton–the list of celeb-fashion partnerships goes on. Here, a rundown on who is doing what with whom.

1. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have debuted a new jewellery collection, The Protector, for Asprey. Snake-inspired, the collection includes diamond, black diamond and pave rings in addition to bracelets, earrings, men’s cuff links and dress studs.

2. Madonna has signed on to be the face of Dolce & Gabbana’s Spring 2010 collection–featuring their sultry corsets.

3. Model with the Mick Jagger mouth Lara Stone has replaced Madonna as the face of Louis Vuitton.

4. Victoria Beckham has reportedly signed Gossip Girl Blake Lively for her new collection.

5. Lindsay Lohan is said to be staying on at Ungaro, despite the horrified general reaction to her first collection.

Spring collections showed plenty of skin, with models strutting their stuff in innerwear as outerwear.

Bras, corsets, tap pants, and briefs were sent down the runway by designers who aren’t usually on our radar for dare-to-bare wear. They’re following in the footsteps of lingerie lovers Jean Paul Gaultier and John Galliano, of course. Above all, we heart Stella McCartney’s plunge-front lace halter, Dolce & Gabbana’s black lace and quilted bodysuit, Marcio Madeira’s nude corset, and pairing lace beneath a tuxedo jacket.

Our Top Do’s and Don’ts
Do rock the look at work
Don’t show bare skin or full-view actual lingerie at work, maybe a lace-edged slip showing from beneath hemline
Do work the look out of context: a lace black corset over a white t-shirt works well
Do make sure it’s delicate and expensive-looking
Don’t expose those tacky elastic bra-straps
Do save something for the imagination

Get the Look
Find your runway-worthy underthings at The Bay, and Jacob.

Despite Fall 09’s penchant for gargantuan heels, designers at Milan Fashion week were all about petite kitten heels.

We, and Andre Leon Tally–who called them “towering torture chambers”–were a bit frightened of the enormous heels high-tailing it down the Fall 09 runways. We loved the look of them: Nanette Lepore’s sandals, boots and ankle wrap pumps on studded platforms; Michael Kors’ black patent leather, strappy brown and neon-tipped toes and architectural platform soles; 3.1 Phillip Lim’s collaboration with Christian Laboutin and resulting super high platforms-especially lace-up ankle boots; Christian Siriano’s pee-toe pumps with chain metal–but who can walk in these things?

It was with a sigh of relief for the state of our pedicures that we greeted the announcement that Milan designers–who, as Italians, know a thing or two about shoes–let the world know that kitten heels are back. That’s right, the low-lying, petite, oh-so-cute and even comfortable heel is haute.

Marni showed tiny heels, including a pair inspired by rubber navy sandals bought in Chinatown; Missoni showed braided, strappy, Ibiza-inspired sandals; and Dolce & Gabbana–though shirking the kitten heel–showed flat, yes flat, velvet slippers and lace-up Oxfords.

Get the Look
Find your runway-inspired kitten heels at either Aldo, Browns, Geox, J2, Kris + Cris, Nine West or Sterling Shoes. 

LET’S HEAR IT
Kitten heels: chic or boring?

Valerie Tiu

Black is back. If you were at this year’s Oakridge Fall Fashion Affair, you may have noticed an absence of colour, but make no mistake: a little hint never hurt anyone. Colour is not just a way to liven up an ensemble. It can also enhance your features, express your personality, and create a style statement. 

Fall 2009 runways–from Dolce and Gabbana to Jean Paul Gaultier, Dior to Versace–all featured pops of colour. The hot trend for fall is colour blocking, a la Marc Jacobs, and mixing brights to contrast with stark shades (think Gucci and Louis Vuitton). This trend is great for those that may typically shy away from colour or, if you’re like me, have a wardrobe full of black.

Check out Crisca, Femme De Carriere, Jacob and Teenflo (pictured) for some stylish separates that can be easily mixed with basic dark pieces. All of these retailers are also great for classics like pencil skirts and trousers.

The key colour of the catwalk was most certainly red, in any shade: cherry, burgundy, scarlet and crimson. This classic hue was showcased with head-to-toe ensembles, simple pops of colour on accent pieces, and beautifully-mixed textures. My dream look for fall consists of a cherry red knee-length sheath dress, scarlet double-breasted funnel neck coat, and dark shades from DKNY–along with black thigh-high boots from Browns–very classic, sleek and mysterious.

Cool shades of purple, blue and emerald, and warm tones like orange, yellow and pink, were all seen as perfect accents on avant garde accessories, unique headpieces and fierce footwear. Just remember to choose colours that work well with your skin tone and flatter your figure. Aldo, Coach and Blue Ruby are sure to satisfy your colour craving with their charming bangles. Nine West, Ingledew’s and Jwalk also have fabulous footwear in a wide-range of palettes.

We’d done our research, we’d perused all the top shows, and delivered our list of five big fall trends for fall. But we can’t ignore these five more–and you’ll be glad we didn’t.

Five More Trends for Fall

Fabulous Forties
We adore the Forties: Glamour, glitz, and movie stars. True, tailored madness. Thank goodness designers such as Dolce & Gabbana, Alber Elbaz for Lanvin, Aquilano.Rimondi, and Alexander McQueen agree. They sent out 40s-inspired looks including skirts, jackets with enhanced shoulders, and double breasted dress-coats that any MGM tailor would be proud of.

Biker Babes
Suddenly, being bad is good again. This season sees biker-inspired toppers, cropped or shrunken and often in black leather, taking the spotlight. We saw it at Balmain, Alexander Wang, and Roland Mouret.

80s Hits
Marc Jacob did 80s New York nightclub nostalgia, Gucci’s Frida Giannini did sharkskin suits, and Antonio Berardi did crystal-studded mini dresses. Donatella Versace delivered, of course, the sexiest party dresses.

Ruche It
It’s elegant, it’s fresh, and it harkens back to Grecian goddess dresses. It’s ruching-and we love it. From mini skirts to evening dresses to jodhpurs, outfits at Balenciaga, Donna Karan, and Oscar de la Renta were draped and gathered. 

Classic Cuts It
Camel hair, pinstripes, double-breasted jackets, tweed. Designers from Christopher Kane-yes, even rule breakers were following age-old tips this season-to Miuccia Prada, Ralph Lauren and Consuelo Castiglioni for Marni delivered classic pieces to be invested in and worn again and again.

Get the Look
Find truncated toppers at Aritzia, ruched dresses at After Five, and tailored looks at Banana Republic.