Meet: Nervous System, gorgeous design for the nerdiest among us

We got this via a friend, Chi Chiu, via Fast Company via DesignGlut.com.  Which means several design blogs have broken this story, but it doesn't seem like any of the fashion blogs have picked it up yet.  We hope we're one of the first!

Jessica Rosenkrantz and Jesse Louis-Rosenberg, two MIT grads, started Nervous System as a side-project offshoot of their architecture projects.  They use generative processes, interactive algorithms inspired by natural phenomena and organic forms, to create jewelry that is at once beautiful and mathematical.  They believe so strongly in the fluid and infinitely customizable nature of their products that they make their open-source applets available under the creative commons license.

For those of us laypeople who have trouble understanding the esoteric language on their 'About Us' page, all we need to know is that the pieces are a unique blend of science, design, and art--made with sustainable materials and using ethical methods.  And besides the fact that they are lovely, they are also totally affordable!  I love it and will definitely be treating myself to a couple pieces this holiday season.

Hot or Not? Ombre Nails

I think it was Glamour where I first saw this, and I felt so instantly conflicted that it could only mean one thing: another Hot or Not post!


So this nail trend involves starting with a base color, then mixing in varying degrees of white or black nail polish, to get an ombre look that fades from dark to light.  When it comes to nail polish, I generally have the same outlook as I do towards my tacos: KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid).  Why let a good thing get out of hand (ha, ha)?

Then again, I can't deny that it's kind of pretty.  Definitely classier than multi-colored nails and scary add-ons. But what do you think?  Gimmicky?  Smacking of tacky?  I can't decide.

P.S. I'm actually pretty impressed/intrigued by the nails in the third picture (above).  I'm sure that takes a lot more patience/nail painting skill than I have.

Polyvore

It's me, Jena, the rarely seen in the wild Wearability contributor!

Anyway I have a site recommendation, and here's hoping no one has heard of it yet:

If you're a window shopper, app devotee, or closet paper doll hobbyist, you might like building an ensemble on Polyvore. I spent a good thirty minutes there trying to come up with an outfit for a theoretical date to a theoretical 40's style cocktail party. A lot of the selections are expensive, but I spotted a couple mid-range items in there (Forever 21?)

Anyway it's pretty intuitive and I'm curious to see what people put together.

The Erickson Beamon necklace that Chuck gave Blair in Gossip Girl - on sale at RueLaLa.com.

via ruelala.com

So I'm not really a diamonds kind of girl (too much controversy/conflict), and I don't know who has this kind of money to throw around, but I was pretty excited to see this necklace on sale at RueLaLa.com this morning. It's the same necklace Chuck got Blair for her birthday, after the first time they got busy in his limo.

There's only one left and it's $7999 (down from a cool $30K). Exciting.

Read: The Sartorialist

The Sartorialist is easily one of my favorite street fashion blogs. Every morning I'm excited to see new posts that feature the most stylishly dressed people from New York, Milan, London and beyond. I live vicariously through his photos, hoping that I too, can be that well dressed.


The creator, Scott Schuman, recently published a 500-page book featuring his favorite photos and he'll be in San Francisco tomorrow. Hoping I'll keep my cool and not turn into a giggly teenager, I can't wait to get my copy signed. Maybe girlfriend/fiancée(?!) Garance (another favorite blogger) will be there too. Two for one deal. Live in LA? Scott will be there the next day.

San Francisco
Wednesday October 21st, 7:30pm-8:30pm
50 Geary Street

Los Angeles
Thursday October 22nd, 8pm-10pm
The Beverly Center
8th Floor, Outdoor Terrace

Source: 1-16

"FLAME HAIRED": One beautiful, striking image from the JAK & JIL blog

via jakandjil.com

So normally I find the Jak & Jil blog a bit exhausting with its spiked and spiky heels, slavish adherence to all things high fashion, and decidedly unwearable get-ups (at least...for regular people). But every once in a while Tommy Ton blows my mind.

Such is the case with this photo of Taylor Tomasi, preternaturally red hair against a backdrop of neutrals. The precise angle of her profile, the tilt of her head, her expression, the wind-sweptedness of it all. For a moment, the world revolves around her. The buttery black leather and hard-edged zippers are an afterthought. Thank you, Tommy Ton.

The slanket taught us there's lots of design left in the world of functional apparel... what's next?

Ever since Steph bought me a slanket, I haven't ever been cold at my desk. The slanket is a blanket with sleeves. You wear it like a robe. It's a blanket. It's a slanket! Somewhere along the way, some designers decided there was a lot more innovation left in this space. For instance...

Sometimes it's kind of cold and you want to do some work, but you're at the cafe and there's too much noise and distraction. Luckily, there's the Laptop Compubody Sock to the rescue.

Or sometimes its cold and you want to eat a sandwich. Voila, the sandwich eating ski mask.

What will they come up with next? More on these and other ingenious inventions over at sternlab.org, and detailed instructions on how to create the Compubody Sock at instructables.com.

It's not quite wearable. Well, not in public, anyway. But it is awesome.

Dilemmas: Incarnations of Black-and-White Tie Dye, the Dress and the Scarf.

Another of my personal fall trends (maybe they are better labeled as "interests," "fascinations," or "obsessions"): tie-dyed things.  I'm specifically drawn to the black-and-white variety, or its equally neutral cousins (gray-and-black, white-and-navy), because let's face it, I am not one to pull off the rainbow-hued hippie sort of tie-dyed T-shirt.

The concept first entered my consciousness through Lucky's end-page spread from Andrea Linett, the insufferably smug creative director who has been called "the horsey, manfaced ex-Sassy editor" by at least one vehement blogger.  I know, I hate her sense of entitlement too.  But I totally developed an infatuation with this tie-dyed cashmere scarf she featured in the some really old issue of Lucky. The very idea of tie-dyed cashmere was intoxicating - such a flippant, casual method applied to such a luxurious material.  The scarf, of course, was way out of my budget, but the idea stuck.

A month ago, my dear Annie sported a simple tank dress from Calvin Klein that was tie-dyed in the same way.  Of course, this girl can pull off anything, but it really looked good--and versatile to boot, the way she combined it with black tights and a belt. Then, I saw a glimpse of some tie-dye the other week while browsing through American Apparel.  Usually I am hard-pressed to find anything worth buying at AA, but the style of the dye almost exactly matched the one in Ms. Linett's spread.  And finally, I was reminded of this latent tie-dye obsession when I came across a beautiful, version of the tie-dyed dress in the tambukiki eBay boutique.

Now, I'm torn!  Do I get the simple shift dress from Calvin Klein (on sale now for just $20!)?  Or the giant and infinitely versatile circle scarf from American Apparel ($34)?  Or both?  Or do I bite the bullet and invest in one of the uber-extravagant cashmere versions ($200+)?

Note to self: if it's a hot item on eBay, save yourself some drama and just Buy It Now

Normally I hate eBay snipers, except of course when I'm sniping myself =P  In this case, I had bid early, but I got greedy.  The starting price for this lovely victorian ruffled blouse was $16.99.  The Buy It Now price was something like $19.99.  Of course, I decided to put in a regular bid on it, hoping to get the item for less than the Buy it Now price.  Stupid, stupid.

Of course someone outbid me less than an hour before the auction ended.  Luckily I was watching it with eagle eyes and was able to go back and bid up.  But I was outbid again.  And again.  Whoever had outbid me had set the relatively high max bid price of $25.  I breathed deeply, consulted both Sushmita and Jimmy, and went ahead and bid $26 with 30 seconds to spare.

I thought I had it in the bag.  Then, some b*tch comes out of the woodwork and proceeds to dash my hopes to the ground by bidding $27 and taking the shirt right out from under my nose.  Lesson learned.

Meet: tambukiki (or, I'm pretty sure I've found a new addiction)

So there I was, minding my own business, doing a search on "purple coats" on eBay for a possible Halloween costume when I saw, at the bottom of the listings, a sponsored listing (read: AD!) for this other eBay seller who apparently had nothing to do with purple coats, tambukiki.  I was intrigued by the dress in the picture and clicked through.

I found myself in a veritable treasure trove of dazzlingly cute, pretty, wearable, and--best of all--totally affordable clothing!  Actually, what struck me first were the product photos.  They are certainly done with an expensive camera against a simple gray backdrop, and the seller includes no less than nine high-quality photos for each item.  By far the best product photos I've ever seen on eBay.  I don't understand why more people don't do this--it makes your stuff look so much better!

But beyond the photos, the styles themselves are so very cute, and so very unique, and the stuff seems to be decent quality for the price (I'd place it somewhere around Urban Outfitters or the nicer stuff at Forever 21).  I am dizzy with the vast selection tambukiki offers - probably around 1500 listings at any given time, so there's always something new and fabulous to discover.  It's taking a lot of self control for me to refrain from buying up her whole store.  For you, dear readers, I picked through almost all 1500 listings and bring you the best of my favorites list.

You can find tambukiki's eBay store here.  Happy shopping--I'll probably see you at the auction block =)