Mary Katrantzou for Topshop

Mary Katrantzou for Topshops. Images via Agnes B.

I've long been a fan of Mary Katrantzou's gorgeously bold digital print dresses, adorned with oversized trompe l'oeil necklaces or gigantic perfume bottles. Up until now, her designs have been difficult to find, in addition to being impossible to afford (according to my budget, at least). Therefore I was pretty excited when I read on Agnes B's blog that Katrantzous has an upcoming collaboration with Topshop, arriving in stores in late February. Although I'm still unsure as to whether the collection will arrive in the U.S. store, I have my fingers crossed. Comprised of four printed jersey pieces, Katrantzous has taken some of her signature prints from her Central St. Martin's graduate collection, and adapted them for the mass market at a significantly lower price (around $70 each).

-Tiffany

Them Is Us

Them Magazine

A couple of days ago, I received the first issue of Them magazine in the mail, from the same people behind the clothing line Them Atelier. Based in Los Angeles, the writers and editors cover fashion, music, art, photography, and culture from a distinctly left coast perspective, focusing on local talent, and shooting their editorials in the extreme and beautiful landscapes that surround them. The contents are filled with bite-sized tidbits of information paired with rich photographs, and highlights include features on one of my favorite new bands, Warpaint, and the work of immensely talented jewelry designer Annie Costello Brown. The best part? The issue came with a perfectly broken-in swamp-green tee from Them Atelier, which you will be sure to see me wearing all the time. Which brings me to wonder, why can't more fashion magazines include lovely articles of clothing in them? Anyway, here are some of my favorite spreads.

A necklace by Annie Costello Brown

A spread from the Angeles National Forest Fire editorial

The work of photographer Cory Marrero

The work of photographer Todd Weaver

L.A. based clothing line Cerre

-Tiffany

Triskaidekaphobia at Kabiri!

Triskaidekaphobia Buckle Ring. All pictures from Kabiri.

I can't tell you how incredibly excited Christina and I both are that Triskaidekaphobia is finally up on the Kabiri website. Kabiri is one of my favorite UK based jewelry stores, with three locations in London, including an outpost at Selfridges, and an extensive online site where you're likely to blow your entire paycheck (consider yourself warned). The most wonderful thing about browsing through the treasure trove of baubles is that you'll find plenty of newbies (like ourselves), right next to seasoned veterans like Philip Crangi. Take a peek and see what you might discover.

For those of you who have inquired, our Buckle Rings and "Drink Me" Necklaces, which are currently sold out at all of our other stores, are in stock at Kabiri right now, along with a few other pieces which are exclusive to the store. And for those of you who live in London, look for our "Drink Me" necklace in a special Alice in Wonderland inspired room that Selfridges will create to promote the upcoming Tim Burton film!

Sterling silver "Drink Me" opening perfume bottle necklace

Kabiri exclusive: antique gold-plated ribbon pinky ring with dangling spider charm


Kabiri exclusive: leather restraint cuff

-Tiffany

Quiksilver Spring

Quiksilver sweater, knit tank, and skirt worn as dress worn, and Roxy jersey necklace. Worn with my own Chanel boots and Triskaidekaphobia friendship necklace, and a pair of gloves we found lying around.

Last Thursday morning, I had the pleasure of taking a peek at Quiksilver's new spring collection, which is trickling into stores now, and styling a look on a mannequin using my favorite items. I naturally gravitated to the gray and neutral toned pieces, and fell in love with a number of their loose knit and jersey numbers, which are perfect for layering, and also make great transitional pieces from winter to spring. I picked out an outfit that I wouldn't think twice about wearing: a diaphanous oversized gray cardigan made out of a ribbony yarn and a knit vest with a lovely pleated detail on the back, layered over a simple black jersey skirt which I hiked up into a dress.

After some prodding by Simone, who is absolutely impossible to say no to, I changed into my outfit of choice, and took a few pictures wandering around the sun-drenched and stunning model apartments in the newly built Jackson Square building where the event took place. Alas, the dress-up had to end sometime, and at the end of the mini-shoot, it was hard for me to leave the fairy-tale homes and change back into my own clothes. Even though I will never be able to afford one of the six million dollar flats, I did leave with a Quiksilver gift certificate, which I will probably put towards a few of these pieces!

I picked out this knit vest because I loved the pleating detail in the back

The finished mannequin. I wore a Coven dress, Rick Owens sweater, Chanel boots, Look from London tights, Forever 21 headband, Triskaidekaphobia friendship necklace.

-Tiffany

Oh, Savannah

Spanish Bride. All photos by Emily Searle.

We have always adored former Screaming Mimi's shopgirl Savannah Wyatt for her sweet demeanor, and her willingness to drop everything and DJ for us whenever we have asked. We are also huge fans of her eponymous millinery line, which frequently sells out at Mimi's. The styles range from sweet bows and a heavily fringed headband that simulates untrimmed bangs, to a more sinister Crown of thorns made of braided leather and spiky metal cutouts. Naturally, my favorite piece is an outrageous lace hat adorned with a long fringed veil, that look like it was made for Lady Gaga. In addition to Mimi's, you can find her work online at Not Just A Label.

Lace half hat with fringed veil
Lace visor
Fringe bang

Crown of Thorns

Double Crown of Thorns
Spiked headband

Tiffany

Cultura Shock

Recently, a lot of my favorite new designers have roots in textile design. Jennifer Jennings, the designer behind Oakland based Serial Cultura, studied traditional fiber arts at the Kansas City Art Institute, and her pieces reflects a love for mixing incredible prints with structured silhouettes. The fabrics are all either hand printed or digitally printed from original artwork, and I love the psychedelic swirl prints Jennings created for Fall 2009. I'm totally broke, but a few of these pieces (including the beautiful scarf above) are on sale for 50% off at La Rousse.

-Tiffany

Kouklita Couture

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. What you see is a miniature replica of my favorite look from the Spring 2010 Proenza Schouler collection, complete with perfectly dip-dyed hair. My lovely friend Andrew Yang has been working on his impressive collection of handmade dolls, The Kouklitas, for over a year. While in the past, most of his dolls are conceived with fantastical background stories rooted in Andrew's somewhat sadistic imagination (Siamese twins, overweight nymphomaniacs, cyclops, etcetera), and given an appropriately dramatic wardrobe to match, Andrew has taken his little ladies back to his own fashion-forward roots with this editorial he did for The Block Magazine. Andrew, who used to work as a designer for Dennis Basso, used his tailoring skills to create these perfect recreations of Spring's most outrageous looks for this new batch of "supermodel" dolls. I love the outfits he chose, especially the creepy Katie Eary number, and the pair of Comme des Garcons girls, complete with tufts of cotton-candy hair. All the dolls will eventually be on sale on his website (outfitted, his dolls average around $600), and if you feel like he missed one of your favorite spring looks, Andrew is always available to make custom dolls and outfits.

-Tiffany

Choncho's Tacos

Rodarte x Target cardigan, vintage Lanvin sweater, vintage skirt, Chanel boots, Banana Republic lace tights, Forever 21 headband, Triskaidekaphobia necklace

Yesterday morning, Jimmy and I headed out to Brooklyn to meet our friends Forrest and Allegra at Forrest's newly opened restaurant, Choncho's Tacos. Forrest has been running his taco stand out of the Brooklyn Flea since last summer, and after the incredible success, he has opened up a permanent space on a loading dock at 170 Tillary Street (on the edge of DUMBO and Fort Greene). While the Flea outpost remains open every weekend, the new space is open Tuesday through Sunday, with an expansive sit down space, a gallery with rotating exhibitions, and two fireplaces to keep it warm and cozy during the winter. I ordered my favorite dish, Choncho's classic fried fish tacos, and even though I meant to take a picture of it before I ate, I immediately forgot the plan and gulped the whole thing down. Make sure to take a trip out to Brooklyn to try them yourselves, or stop by the stand the up the next time you're at the Flea.

Jimmy and Forrest

One of two cozy fireplaces

-Tiffany

APEX Designer Sale

I know this is fairly advanced warning, but I'm sure you're going to want to mark this on your calendars. On Friday, January 29th a passel of my favorite designers are getting together at TriBeCa Grand to host a special sale for APEX. APEX is a Manhattan based organization that provides mentoring and educational services for underserved Asian American youth. All of the incredible participants, which include Doo Ri, Risto, Ideeen, Bliss Lau and Mary Meyer, will donate 20% of the evenings proceeds to APEX. There will be a sponsored bar and special treats, and if you missed out on any of these designers' recent sample sales, you still have the chance to get your hands on their goods. For those of you who aren't in New York, a selection of the items will be available for presale starting on January 27th at Cutdrop.com.

-Tiffany

Bittersweet Symphony

I've been a fan of Brooklyn-based jewelry line, Bittersweets since they started designing their line in 2002. There pieces have always been the perfect mix of cheeky, creepy and cute, and they always maintain a sense of humor without being overly hipster-ironic. I love their recent exploration of their "sweeter side" with these romantic pieces: a heart pierced by an arrow, two sides of a human heart, and a set of rings that read "Live long and prosper." They're perfect for Valentine's Day (I know it's a full month off, but I'm a closet romantic, and I'm already planning). And if you're looking for something a little more serious, they make custom wedding rings too.

-Tiffany

Bye Bye Yohji

As many of you already know, the two Yohji Yamamoto stores in New York City have closed permanently. Yesterday and today, behind the papered up windows, they had a private friends and family 90% off sale at their Soho store. I stopped by late today, even though I was originally planning on skipping it for lack of funds, after my friend Brandon, a Yohji fanatic, called me urgently reminding me that this was my last chance. To emphasize the point, he began reading me the ridiculous prices for items ($57 for a Limi Feu bustier, $29 for a top, etc), until my feet were walking themselves out the door.

I of course arrived quite late in the game, but I was rather surprised by the selection they did have left, which included one of my favorite Limi Feu pieces, a pair of shorts with a detachable half skirt. In fact, most of the Limi Feu pieces remained untouched by the predominantly older customers, and I couldn't help but wonder if part of the store's troubles stemmed from failing to attract younger crowds into the ranks of die-hard Yohji fans. Unfortunately, although I spent over an hour picking through the remains, everything I desperately wanted was the wrong size. Brandon, however, managed to get the above coat, as well as a sweater.

I almost was tempted to get something as a souvenir of sorts, but reminded myself that Yohji will still be available in the U.S. at other stores, and that Y-3 stores will remain open. It is still a very sad moment to see such an pioneering fashion house close its doors in New York, especially after seeing it on that corner for half of my life. Lets hope that they get a chance to reorganize, and come back to New York when this recession is over.

-Tiffany

The Phobia List

Christina and I are in the middle of frantically putting together our next collection while working simultaneously on Spring deliveries, but in the meantime, our Holiday deliveries for Triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13) have been trickling into stores. The collection is currently available at Screaming Mimi's in New York, She Boutique in Chicago, and online from The Moon and Mars in Scotland and Revolve Clothing. It will also be available at Kabiri in London and Seven New York within the next couple of weeks. Here are some shots from our lookbook, photographed by Dom, and modeled by my beautiful friend Lisa last year. All the clothes were borrowed from Screaming Mimi's, and all the photo editing and website design work was done by Christina's multi-talented other half, James. We're so lucky to have such talented, supportive friends, we seriously couldn't have done it without you guys (and trust me, we'll be calling on you all again shortly).

As for all of the many, many people out there who have complained about our very long, and very unpronounceable name, at least we didn't name the collection Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia (fear of the number 666).

Tooth spike cuff in gold and silver plate

"Apres moi le deluge" sterling silver ID bracelet, and sterling silver restraint ring

Antique gold plate owl necklace

Leather bow necklace and sterling silver mirror necklace
Leather ruff collar

-Tiffany

Mykita

Mykita & Romain Kremer sunglasses,

I'm not a huge sunglasses person (I only have two or three pairs), but I totally love these collaborations between German eyewear company Mykita, and designers Romain Kremer and Bernhard Willhelm. Each pair is a miraculous construction engineered of a single piece of thin metal. Romain Kremer's sunglasses, which have replaced traditional lenses with metal slats, are modeled after Inuit sunglasses, which were constructed in a similar manner (if you want to see a good example, watch the excellent film, Atanarjuat, The Fast Runner). Bernhard Willhelm opted for a more traditional design, with one round pair and one square pair in a variety of colors for women, and a modern take on aviator glasses for men.

Mykita and Bernhard Willhelm sunglasses

Mykita and Bernhard Willhelm sunglasses

Mykita sunglasses

Mykita sunglasses

-Tiffany