What NOT to Wear to Work

Kat over at Corporette has a great list of items that should never be worn at the office.

Kat's List:

• Any shorts (or any pants that are less than full length — ankle-length pants and capris will be questionable at some offices!)
• Flip-flops (whether they’re plastic or leather, rethink)
• Sandals of any kind; peep toe shoes are also often questionable at the most conservative offices
• Tall boots (even knee-high used to be questionable, but over-the-knee styles are definitely questionable)
• Anything that is overly noisy in the hallways (flip-flops are the primary offender here, but other things qualify also — corduroy pants, for example)
• Denim, or items cut like denim (e.g., 5 pockets) — cords, khakis, etc.
• Lace or sheer clothing
• Sleeveless tops or dresses (worn without a cardigan or blazer on top)
• Any item that can be worn to the gym (sneakers, yoga pants, terrycloth wristbands, large shapeless t-shirts)
• Anything too short, tight, or low-cut

I agree with her list and I would add the following:

• Too high heels. (The sexy secretary look is not okay.)
• Animal print. (You don't want to look like Stiffler's Mom.)
• Anything old or faded. (Clients are paying money for your skills and if you look shabby, they'll question your skill and judgment.)
  
• Patterned hosiery. (Keep it neutral.)
  
• Big jewelry. (I was always taught "nothing bigger than a quarter" is okay. No big hoops, no multiple rings, no big rings, nothing flashy.)
• Nail polish has to be in this range: "purple - red - coral - pink". No blues, greens, yellows, or blacks. Ever. Any no sparkles! For some offices only nude or neutral polishes will do.
  

That's all I can think of for now, any other ideas?

Fasion Silhouettes InfoGraphic

Check out this neato infographic! I love how 1978 is represented by Punk Rock fashion. More here.

Top 8 iPhone Apps for Busy Women

Forbes has a great blog post about iPhone apps to boost your productivity. The full article is available here, I'll just summarize the article below.

1. Dropbox - Free
Dropbox is like a flash drive, in that it allows you to hold up to 2 GB of data. Unlike a flash drive, it’s always accessible. Dropbox uses cloud technology to let you to share information across multiple computers and mobile devices.

2. Elements - Free
Elements provides you with a notebook in your pocket. A product of Dropbox labs, Elements is a sleek text editor you can organize into folders and share across multiple devices.

3. Instapaper - $4.99
Instapaper allows you to save and archive online articles for off-line reading. With the added bonus of being able to share links via Twitter and Tumblr.

4. Pulse - FREE
Pulse is a news platform that picks stories for you based on your source preferences. With its sleek design and slideshow interface, it’s easy to browse stories on and offline.

5. Snapp! - $2.99
Snapp! offers a simple way to collect and store contact information and stay in touch with people with the click of a button—and even let’s you keep them organized by event. It also has the added option of sending an automatically-generated follow up email.

6. Evernote - FREE
Evernote is a useful service for managing everything from life’s marginalia to your daily tasks. The app allows you to take photos, store pictures, write notes, and record voice memos.

7. iP (also known as iPeriod) - $1.99
Usefully, iPeriod helps you manage, record and track your cycle.

8. Instagr.am - FREE
Instagr.am is an app, photo feed and social network that unites people with images of their day-to-day. With filters like a Hipstamatic or Lomography camera, Instagr.am allows users to modify photos, add different colors and textures and share their photos across their social networks like Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, and Flickr.

Spotlight: Butter London's Animal Testing Policy

Good news from London that has nothing to do with that silly wedding people keep talking about... Butter London's adorable nail polishes are completely cruelty free and vegan. All polishes are also "3 Free" -- No Formaldehyde, No toluene, and No DBP (Phthales). Sweet!

I picked up a colour from their new S/S 2011 collection called "Teddy Girl" this week. It's a cute pastel pink. Totally opaque and long wearing. The collection was inspired by the impressionist painting style, especially Monet's work.

Christian Louboutin Sues YSL for Making Red Soles

There's a different kind of trademark infringement suit happening in the world of fashion. Normally, it's a designer and a no-name copycat going to battle, but this time two fashion giants are in a dispute.

Yves Saint Laurent's spring 2011 collection features some red pumps with matching red soles. In a fierce display of red-sole entitlement, Christian Louboutin is suing YSL for this. Christian Louboutin accuses fellow Parisian fashion powerhouse Yves Saint Laurent of counterfeiting and infringing on his brand's trademark look: the red sole. The lawsuit cites four specific YSL models that all have scarlet soles.

Maybe it's just me, but I don't think one designer should be able to claim trademark rights in all red soles, everywhere. That would be a huge design limitation to put on other shoemakers. Plus, come on, YSL is a big enough deal that it isn't trying to steal goodwill from Louboutin - it has plenty of its own goodwill! More here and here.

What Makes a Person Ugly?

The Huffington Post, has a great piece by Robert Tornambe called "What Makes a Person Ugly?" I think he does a great job explaining how personality traits affect how physically attractive people may appear.

Listed below are his five "flawed" personality traits. If you have the first one, then you'll appear uglier. If you have the second, then you'll appear more attractive. I think he's pretty bang on. Think about Mr. Samberg over here - not conventionally attractive, but so funny and charming that he becomes very attractive.

1) Conceitedness vs. Confidence
2) Grimness vs. Humorousness
3) Selfishness vs. Honest Interest In Others
4) Cynicism vs. Optimism
5) Narcissism vs. Healthy Vanity

More here.

Corporate Finance for the Fashion World...

Two legal stories from fashion world to report.

First, Prada had a stellar year in 2010 and it appears to be close to listing itself on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Women's Wear Daily reports that Prada's initial public offering would consist of a 20-percent stake that values the company at $9.5 billion, but per the Hong Kong listing authorities, the label isn't allowed to talk to the press about it until they've been approved.

Next up, Jimmy Choo wants to buy back Jimmy Choo. Fashionista reports that Jimmy Choo doesn't own his namesake label and actually hasn't been involved for more than 10 years. Instead, a UK private equity firm, TowerBrook, owns the majority of the company. Tamara Mellon, co-founder/chief creative officer, also owns 15% of the business. If Choo is successful, this could create major shifts within the brand as Choo’s ownership of the company would almost certainly alienate Mellon.

Vegan Ivanka Trump Shoes

Ivanka Trump has recently released an adorable - and affordable - line of shoes. I emailed the company to see if any of the products were animal-friendly and they were kind enough to send me links to two items. Both are very cute! Peridot Thong Sandals available here for $60. Scapoli flats available here for $80. The flats would look good on a casual friday with jeans and blazer.