Moving on to Fall: Material and Style

Many days, we learn about fashion and trends from our customers. Chelsea Mansulich is one of those ladies. She walks into the shop always looking adorable, always managing to put together a prefect outfit that we all somehow overlooked on the rack. So, we asked Chelsea to write some of our blogs. Here is Chelsea's take on materials and styles to transition you into fall and some of her favorite Swap picks!

As the seasons change, we pack away our seersucker and eyelet dresses in exchange for crisp button downs and blazers. The September issues of magazines have hit the stands signaling that it is time for fall, but New Orleanians know that the weather isn't quite ready to cooperate. So, how can we transition our wardrobes with the rest of the world, while still dressing appropriately for our smoldering weather. The following tips will help you get more mileage out of your wardrobe so you can invest in the perfect camel colored pea coat for chilly October nights.

Layers: Layers can be easily pealed off and put back on. Outdoors to indoors, to outdoors, etc. Add a blazer to your dress. It is climate controlled, leaving you comfortable with options. You can go from office wear to a dinner date by putting on or taking off a layer. A cardigan, scarf, or light jacket can do the trick. We no longer look for long-sleeve only options for cold weather. It is any top, with the perfect warm and cozy add on, to complete the look.
( Dress: Free People $49.99, Blazer: J. Jill $59.99

Button Downs: Button downs allow you to look effortlessly polished, no matter what the occasion. And, button downs are always in style, in some capacity. Either starched or casually wrinkled, button downs always have a place in trendy. Meticulously roll up the sleeves for a polished look, or scrunch them up, un-ironed, for a more relaxed look. As the weather gets cooler unroll your sleeves and you'll be set! This set from Theory is perfect transition wear.

( Blouse: Tracy M. $25.99, Capris: BCBG Maxazria $31.99)

Shoes: Wedges and sling backs are very now. Patent wedges, such as the Armani pair pictured here, are great for class, a night out, office reports, and you can still trek scores the CBD comfortably in them. Patent is a smart material to wear during this rainy season for fairing torrential downpours. Whereas wearing suede and leather can be taking a risk, patent easily wipes off and is rain resistant.

(Armani 159.99)

Structure:

Military touches are chic and can easily transition from season to season. Pair a military-esque piece with a pretty feminine bag (such as the Coach bag

pictured here) and a pair of Manolo sling-backs to soften any outfit. Think tough and pretty. Mix the two, it somehow works.
(dress: Kensie 49.99)
(slingbacks Manolo Blahnik 89.99)
(purse: Coach on sale)

Unsure about what colors you should donne? Chocolate browns, plums, jewel tones, and military green are perfect fall options. Consult our color entry here to edit and perfect your look! - Chelsea

Transitioning into Fall

It it almost fall already? It seems as if we say the same thing every August, not believing that May came, and summer went. Now it is August. We are attempting to transition into fall; which as we all know, our fall is not really fall. September, October, and November, are really just an extension of summer in New Orleans. We get to appreciate three additional months of hot weather, while wearing light- fabric clothes in fall colors. That is about all of the fall we get here. Then, maybe, if we are lucky, we can wear a warm cozy jacket a day or two in December.

As we “transition” into fall, we have to be careful not to gravitate to our very safe basic fall colors: black, brown, and gray. Exploring colors is more difficult than it sounds. No more black shoes, black belt, black purse combinations. It is the season for orchid, gold, choral, rose, red, endive*, perfect intense colors to add personality to your neutrals and move you into the fashion forward fall elite.
So, to make it easy on us all, there lives the color wheel. You can come up with brilliant combinations that will transform any outfit from average to spectacular. This will help us all avoid being so matchy matchy all the time.




Primary colors: red, yellow, and blue; any combination of them look amazing together. That’s why canary yellow and navy look unexpectedly harmonious when placed next to one another, like in this Cynthia Vincent take on the shift dress and Martinez Valero suede shoes.



Color Temperature
Yellow through red-violet are warm colors. Violet through yellow-green are cool colors.
Pair a warm color (orange and red) with a cool color (green and blue) and you’ve automatically found something pleasing to the eye. Kate Spade has mastered this concept.

She placed turquoise adjacent to red and hot pink next to green in this clutch and shoes below. Designers do this to effectively create aesthetically pleasing patterns so they are not perceived as busy.



Complimentary Colors: These are colors found at opposite ends of the color wheel. Chanel brought the power of black and white to the forefront of the fashion industry. This classic opposite can be edgy and elegant.

This BCBG dress is a great example of bold opposites, and the tie facilitates a slimmer waist. Try a dress like this with a nude shoe instead of the easily selected black or cream matched shoe. You can even add a bold colored shoe like royal blue or red.

X Colors are colors that form an X on the color wheel. Experiment with color by making Xs on the wheel. You can come up with many fun and exciting combinations.


Color Rules Based on the Color Wheel
1. Colors that lie next to each other (yellow and green)
2. Colors that form right (90 degree) angles with each other
3. Complimentary Colors: colors that are directly across from each other.
4. Colors that form an X (i.e. blue, orange, violet-red, and yellow, violet, blue-green, and red-orange, etc.)

*Check out Pantone.com for more info on fall colors. Also, visit http://www.pantone.com/images/pages/20710/2010-02/index.html for a full fall color report.

Spring at Swap

Join us for our first annual Maple in April event to celebrate spring, our neighbors, and our community! April 23rd, 2009. 6:00-9:00 pm. The Maple Area Business Association invites you to re-discover the local businesses on Maple Street. Stroll down Maple Street and experience great restaurants, pubs, shopping, salons, and more! The participating merchants will donate 10% of all sales to COPS II.

Consignors: Any unsold items consigned in January are about to expire. Your items will be ready for pick up between April 15-25th. Call us if you have any questions or would like your items dontated. 504-304-6025

Great Deals! Yellow Dots are now 60% off and Blue Dots are 40%!

New Inventory: We have new merchandise that is being put out on the floor this week. Summer dresses, designer pieces, several coach bags. We also have several David Yurman pieces.

See you soon! Michelle, Colleen, Alex, Hannagan, and Caitlin