[TOP 10 TUESDAY] So What Happened At Fashion Week Dallas 2012??

As I finish up editing pictures and videos from the shows I attended at Fashion Week Dallas 2012, I wanted to share a quick (maybe 10 blogs and albums are not that quick) look at what this first annual event brought to Dallas.

"It's not Dallas Fashion Week," said producer Mahiri Takai, "It's how Dallas does Fashion Week."

Check out the links below and decide if Dallas pulled off a good Fashion Week. Personally, I think it was great for the first year and can't wait until 2013. I'll be posting my favorite shows and designers soon.

1. Fashion Week Dallas Day One: Carolina Herrera Keeps it Pretty
   Kicking off Fashion Week Dallas 2012 is best done with an oversized jeweled anklet, a note proven last night as collections by SOCIAL List and Carolina Herrera shared the runway... via The Dallas Observer
   
2. Fashion Week Dallas 2012 Day 2
   Fashion Week Dallas 2012 exulted on Tuesday night! Multiple stunning wedding dresses from Dallas’ Carpe Diem Bride were showcased on the runway at the cool venue... via Small 4 Style
   
3. View More at the Carpe Diem Bride Facebook Album
   
   
   
4. SPAZ Attends Fashion Week Dallas 2012
   Last week, we attended the city’s first annual Fashion Week Dallas 2012... The seven day fashion extravaganza included an exciting line-up... via SPAZ Magazine
   
5. Big D does Big Fashion
   The genius behind Fashion Week Dallas, Mahiri Takai, claims that, for him, fashion is the "staple of artistic expression and the foundation of greatness"... via The Daily Campus
   
6. View More From Day 3 at Darryl Gibson's Facebook Album
   
   
   
7. Fashion Week Dallas 2012 Day 4
   The Fashion Week Dallas extravaganza continued Thursday with three runway shows. Can it get any better? The first show featured hats and headpieces designs... via Small 4 Style
   
8. Girls Night Our PART II
   Last night Chastity from A Curvy Girl's Guide to Style and I hit the Dallas Fashion Week 2012 finale. The Red Ball Aids Benefit & Award Gala took place at the Texas Museum of Automotive History... via From "Rez" to the "City"
   
9. "Fashion Week Dallas 2012" ~ The Wrap Up
   When I first began to see the advertisement for Fashion Week Dallas 2012 I honestly didn’t know what to expect, but I was excited. It was a reason to get out, which is all I need... via They're Just Clothes
   
10. View More From Fashion Week Dallas at Shon Draeshyn Gardner's Facebook Album
    
    

[TOP 10 TUESDAY] Great Hat Ideas to Dress Your Head While It's Still Cold

The weather in Dallas has been steadily cold for six weeks which means hat season started four weeks ago. This is a joyful time for me because, while I love hats, summer in Texas is very unforgiving to extra layers, especially if they're on top of your head.

Inspired by mine and Alex's recent purchases (the knit stripped knit caps pictured on the right), my friend Allison just had to find herself a hat. So off we went for pizza and hat shopping. I'm sure Alex got tired of us trying on almost every hat of season but you can't make an informed decision without weighing your options (or at least that's my excuse when we go shopping).


We started off with flapper-style hats - hence the cigarettes - then moved on to something furrier. My hat seemed appropriate with the full moon coming up.


The animal-ear hats were popular with the anime crowd before they were ever in JC Penney or Rue 21. Their rise to the mainstream, however, has made them lighter on my wallet so I'll probably buy a new one while it's still cold. Plain black or cheetah print like the picture?


What i like most about hats is that they have a stand alone personality. Sure you can use one to complete an outfit but the hat doesn't neet the outfit as much as the outfit needs the hat. Even when they're just keeping heads warm, hats tend to say a lot on their own.



In the end, she bought the military-style cap on the left, which is a great offset to her casual gypsy style. I thought it was a tad ironic that it says "fashion blogger" more than my fuzzy knit cap but the dozen more hats I own make up for that.

I warned her that you can't just ever buy one hat. Like any accessory, they're a great reflection of our mood and who we feel like being that day, and for that reason, you need more than one.

So what kind of hat is favorite at the moment?

[STYLE SCRAPBOOK] Blogging in 2012 ~ Inspiration + Motivational Mood Board

2011 has been a bad year for my blog. It's funny because I've complained about needing inspiration and motivation yet I've failed to feed the part of my life that does exactly that: blogging.

I'm not really into New Year's resolutions as I am rarely able to keep them. But IFB's motivational mood board project helped reinforce goals/resolutions I had made for my blog. I feel like in 2011, I tried to open my blog too much. I wanted to show that I was more than fashion but I forgot this his blog served a niche in chaos of my mind: an outlet for my love of fashion, personal style and where it meets my geekiness.


So for 2012, I want to do the GEEKING OUT posts for the things that really catch my attention. I'm also going to be posting them on my new tumblr along with also those things that make me sparkle inside.

I never thought of myself as a writer but I do enjoy it. I'm going to try and make that a daily thing along with drawing and reading a magazine or book. I just started Eccentric Glamour by Simon Doonan - the book review will be on of many to hopefully come as I love to read.

I've also recently become a fan of Etsy and handmade goods. It's a mix of my girlfriend's transition into a jewelry artisan and my belief that the American economy would be better if we produced more. I'm also dusting off my old sewing machine and, rather than buying new clothes, I will try to make it and blog about it.

At the root of it, I want to feel like I'm creating something and staying true to who I am.