fashion olympics: ryan lochte

it's official. i have a new crush: ryan lochte.

not only is he competing against michael phelps at the london olympics this summer, but he's also up against futbol prince cristiano ronaldo and track runner nick symmonds for the number one hottest sports star in my book. just don't tell my husband. no, not because he'll be jealous, but because he'll be mad i'm not giving all my attention to his soccer man crush, cristiano.

he's not just a badass swimmer, which is my most recent sport of choice, but he is also a florida boy who is candy to the eyes and has a closet that - according to matt lauer on the "today show" this morning - "could rival oprah's closet." (although the closet of carrie bradshaw or anna wintour would have been more convincing...where the heck did lauer pull oprah from?)

ladies, guess what...you can get this desktop wallpaper and more from speedo.com here.

lochte's choice of purple star adorned pink speedos practically puts the lululemon ladies to shame, and by god, i've never seen anyone look that good in a swim cap. he's rocked a diamond grill that while undoubtedly strange, surprisingly attracts me to his style even more. he graced the cover of vogue's "team usa" june issue with fellow olympians, hope solo and serena williams. he also sports some crazy self-designed sneakers and sandals for speedo too; sells usa-themed, wayferer "lochte glasses" on his site; and hopes for a future in the fashion industry. and while the long curly locks gave him better hair than most women, i'm really appreciating his more recent and more manly cropped cut.

here's a cute clip i found on youtube called "behind the goggles" from the reezydaily channel, in which lochte attempts to discuss fashion terms. seems to be a man after my own heart. notice how he even makes all white and a scarf work on a man...



i'm definitely looking forward to seeing more of lochte in the water - and out of it - now that the olympics officially kick off this week. who do you want to see?

fashion week: MIA for MI

i admit it, i'm a sucker for free stuff. but aren't we all? 

that being said, i've never been attracted to the kitschy logoed key chains, press-on acrylic nails, cheap faux eyelashes and over-the-counter brand shampoo samples that typically come in swag bags and just take up space in my garage until the latest green bag of outdated clothes can be taken to goodwill. if it's crap, i don't want it...free or not. which is why the mia tiki stand and "shoe check" at mercedes-benz fashion week on friday was all the more genius.

 
since i'm offering full disclosure already, i'll also admit that of the nearly 100 pairs that i own (yes, i said "nearly" - trying to scale back recently), i didn't own a pair of mia shoes yet. but after this weekend, i think it's safe to say that has changed and will continue to.

while hanging out by the pool in between fashion shows, our lovely guides from img told me about a way cool pr promotion via mia shoes. because it was difficult for those of us in heels - which was probably about 90 percent of guests - to walk in the sand-lined "oasis" show tent, the mia girls set up shop in a tiki hut outside to assist. complete with cute branded beach bags to hold the heels, they offered a complimentary pair of espadrilles in a range of colors and patterns to anyone who checked in with them and "liked" their facebook page, which of course my friends and i took advantage of.

i loved the promo not only for its marketing value (i'm blogging about it, so it worked for publicity, and the facebook "like" brought me see some stylishly hot wedges of theirs that i normally would have missed), but also because i have a new pair of summery khaki flats perfect for days by the beach...which i proudly wore to a seaside lunch after an ocean swim on saturday...

mia shoes espadrilles with an old abercrombie & fitch floral dress, 

a few bracelets and sunglasses from locals surf shop at juno beach.

fashion week: first look at miami swim.

after a month's hiatus that included a few jetblue flights, a wedding, the absolute cutest babies, a lot of swim-bike-run training sessions and a bunch of drives to miami, i'm back on the blog. and it was the latest trip to miami on friday night that motivated this return...thanks to mercedes-benz fashion week swim at the raleigh hotel. because if that didn't do it, i don't know what would have.

here's a few highlights from the trip i took with friends from my day job as we got a behind-the-scenes look at the real fashion week, a la img fashion...

a peek from above:

mojitos & moet poolside:

in the tents at the agua bendita runway show:

in the "oasis" to view the poko pano 2013 collection:

 

and a look at my favorite white, lacy fringe rachel rachel roy dress in action inside the oasis:

and this is just a taste. there's more to come this week as we touch on the two shows we got to see up close and personal, and maybe a few of those we didn't get to see but realize we really missed out on. we'll also recap great pr promotion we took advantage of and how valuable it was for both sides!

a different kind of meditation.

following an ayurveda consultation with my aunt this weekend - only hours after running myself into the ground training for the upcoming loggerhead triathlon - i tried to take a few things away from it to get myself more in "balance" with more grounding, calming activities. this of course included yoga with my favorite instructor, priyanka, at the mandel public library in downtown west palm beach tonight.

it worked in that i felt happy and less stressed when i left...but it could actually be that during my sun salutations and "meditation" i couldn't take my mind off bcbg max azria's foster laser-cut pumps. i know that defeats the point of yoga, but can it really be so bad when lace-inspired wooden heels are on your mind?

i've been eyeing them for months at the cityplace store and learned yesterday that they're now 60 percent off plus another 20 percent off (along with so many other distractions they have in store). i think this is a valid excuse for the mind-wandering...and possibly an excuse to spend some of this week's paycheck.

namaste.

channeling cyndi lauper.

i've gone a little awol on the blog lately, thanks to training for my triathlon, working, doing the family thing, and making excuses, apparently. the real reason is i just haven't really felt inspired for some reason and decided to take a short break. what finally spurred me to get motivated today? the 80s, of course!

a friend is throwing a birthday party for her sister-in-law tonight, which includes everyone getting decked out in their finest neon, tulle, leather, lace and leggings (wait...is this the 80s, or 2012? sounds the same) for pre-drinks and dinner before heading to muvico to catch tom cruise belt it out in rock of ages. and if it's 80s, i'm all about it, as you can see from my past experiences...or just a peek into my closet for that matter...

this first photo is from my 21st birthday when i lived in tallahassee. it's fsu tradition for girls to throw a "waltz," which really just means picking a theme for everyone to dress in before hitting every bar along tennessee street. most girls picked a theme they'd look hot in - barbie and g.i. joe, kentucky derby, playboy bunny, etc. - but not me. i went with 80s prom and rocked a hideous hot pink, off-the-shoulder puffy bridesmaid dress from goodwill; lace fingerless gloves; a cassette tape charm necklace; big strands of pearls; crimped hair and bright blue and pink makeup, hence the ridiculous face i'm making above. only some of my friends were amused by my choice of theme, including my high school girls here, casey and ali, who played along in their cyndi lauper-inspired tutus and side ponies.

i went with something a little classier (or as classy as you can get in tight neon clothing) about two years ago at a friend's house party. shockingly, i already owned all of these items like the leather vest, purple converse and purple houndstooth wayfarers, which you've probably seen in past posts. what i really love about this pic is mark's 80s volleyball player look...complete with socks and sandals.

and let's not forget aly's legwarmers...

want to know what we'll be wearing around cityplace tonight? follow on instagram or check back over the weekend for a new post. 

preview: my husband has some sweet vintage gnr shirts i've been begging to wear for a year now and i finally got approval on one, and my friend julie found a pretty little neon green accessory studded in rhinestones to tie it up with :)

madagascar: a fashion blogger's most wanted.

every once in a while i find a product that makes me stop in my tracks... the sparkly ariel t-shirt at the disney store when i was five. the glittered, maroon patent leather airwalks when i was 12 (god, i wore weird stuff even then). the baby louis vuitton speedy i begged for - and received - on my 21st birthday. the watercolor-printed, sari-inspired dress by rachel rachel roy i wore for my bridal shower.

but these intricately gorgeous scarves made me stop for a different, more powerful reason, however beautiful they are. it was the inspiring stories of craftsmanship shared with me at the junior league of the palm beaches' sip n' shop event earlier this year that made me pull out my wallet. 

* note: the photo here doesn't do it justice, making it look more 

like a fishing net than the pretty purple accessory it is. 

federation sahalandy is located in madagascar (no, not the dreamworks movie) and made up of seven silk and cotton-weaving co-ops and associations, all to empower women and communities in this other country through a global market - with a skill they've had for generations. all products are hand-woven and naturally dyed, which i learned about from the mother of the american woman who started the grassroots effort to help these women and men make their own living. 

i'm a sucker for anything with a meaningful story like this, especially when it's sustainable too. i picked out a purple scarf among the sea of natural colors for my sister in law knowing that she'd like the eco-conscious, worldly nature of it (not to mention its soft texture and perfect design). i purchased it a couple months ago but am only writing about it now because i gave it to her for her birthday tonight. it was a hit...with her and apparently with my husband too:

the organization's website tells the whole story better than i can, so if you'd like more information or want to purchase your own visit it and be sure to read about the farmers and weavers too! 

p.s. this really has nothing to do with the story, but i thought this text conversation with my husband about heading to the birthday dinner at dada in delray beach was worth sharing. listening to too much rihanna, maybe? and this was before the drinks...

 

a's back and so are the cool clothes.

i think my fan status should be demoted since it took me a whole day to catch up on the season 3 premiere of "pretty little liars," but i don't think it was a big error on my part since i have to say the first episode from my dvr tonight was mildly disappointing. a's back...shocker. that being said., the cast wardrobe was not one to disappoint and i, of course, will continue to tune in each week.

as usual, the costumes were on trend but eclectic. aria and hanna continued to pull off the best looks (minus the hair...both sported new 'dos and i'm not a fan, even though i typically love shorter hair), and i pulled out two pieces from the show that i've actually been eyeing to purchase myself.

not sure why she was sleeping in them and her lace-up combat boots other than that they made it easy to run to the cemetery, but aria's ikat denim skinny jeans by joes were the first to catch my eye...both on tv and at anthropologie at cityplace. printed denim is obviously hot, and ikat seems to be the new chevron, so this was a calculated move by pll's stylists.

next was hanna's brightly colored blazer, the natalia cropped jacket by bcbg max azria, which is marked down to $160 online right now. it's nothing new from the brand - i've been eagerly looking it over next to the other color-blocked patterns and pleats throughout the cityplace store for a couple months now, but the style team spiced it up by throwing it over a lace dress. i may have to pick one up and pair it with my new lace dress by rachel rachel roy.

what were your favorite looks?

purple pants preview.

if you know me well, then you know my all-time favorite color is purple, even if that's not shown from my mostly black, gray, taupe and white wardrobe.

i recently hit the lavender jackpot with the ultimate purple pants from anthropologie at cityplace. as a preview to my post later this on a few outfit variations where these trousers are the focus, here are a few of my favorite purple finds that served as my inspiration:

 

clockwise from upper left:

- my purple specialized bike, which got me through the loggerhead triathlon

- bcbg max azria draped cape-style dress and "bewitch me" lipstick by sephora

- cheap but effective lavender nail polish by confetti

- purple converse, bought nearly 10 years ago at hot topic at the mall at wellington green

- mauve floral tool skirt from j.crew at the gardens mall

- wildflowers from my wedding