FabGabBlog – fabulous inspiration for girly glam style and fashion

Style Diary: Fall Coats

It seems every year, I end up buying a new coat. It’s not like I need another. It’s just that I’m terrible at resisting the new fashions. And coats are such easy purchases to rationalize. After all, I figure that they’re practical AND stylish. And being that it’s an outerwear piece, it practically ends up paying for itself within just the first season that I wear it. (I’m good, aren’t I?)

This year, there were a couple coats that I found irresistible. The first one that I fell in love with is this Ann Taylor leopard coat. I liked the unique color scheme on the leopard print. It’s a softer, more subdued print, isn’t it? Plus I got a great deal during their friends and family 40% off sale. This is how I wore it at the Juicy Couture Spring 2012 Presentation .

Here you see me wearing it with skinny corduroy black jeans, Aldo booties, bling necklace a swingy tee which you can’t see, Chanel purse and the new coat. More on the Juicy couture presentation later.

This past week I also wore the coat to work with this Tibi dress from Saks.

The Cynthia Rowley fur-trimmed cardigan is from an amazing Marshall’s deal that I found for $35. The BCBG suede shoes were on sale for $60, the Tibi dress on sale for around $100 and the hello kitty purse a couple hundred.

My 2nd coat purchase is a sale coat from Saks also by Tibi. I fell in love with this because it was also something completely different from what I already owned and looked so modern and glam.

Guess what! The Tibi coat is convertible and can be turned into a fur vest for warmer days. Here, I’ve worn it with a necklace from Off 5th, Calvin Klein dress from Marshall’s, bracelet from Ann Taylor Loft, and suede fringed boots. It was a simple dress with no hanger appeal. I knew it had great styling potential though. My favorite part about the dress are its pockets – perfect for hiding a lip gloss or cell phone.

Is anyone else excited to layer and dress for the fall weather?

Style Diary: Inspired by Olivia Palermo’s Vest

in Fashion, Style Diary

Ever see a celebrity photo and then get totally inspired fashion-wise? It happened to me the other day when I ran into this shot of Olivia Palermo. Olivia is probably my favorite style star. I think she achieves a great balance between being classy and edgy, trendy yet classic. I’m often inspired by her as you can see in my other style diary post which was inspired by an Olivia Palermo outfit.

Seeing Olivia in this black vest reminded me of the black Bebe vest that I had sitting in my closet. It was a piece that sort of dumbfounded me. I got in a styling rut with it and it has sat in the back of my closet yearning for attention. That is until now. I layered it over a feminine dress that hit the knee similar to what Olivia paired her vest with and wore it with a pair of fall booties.

My booties are from Aldo, the dress is from H&M and the chain necklace is Express – all pretty cheap finds proving that you don’t have to spend a lot to create a stylish outfit. Looking at this now, I wish I had a pair of black leather motorcycle gloves to go with the outfit.

Fab Finds – Madeleine Vieira handbags

in Fab Finds, Fashion

I admit. I’m a girly girl. And like any girly girl, I’m unabashedly attracted to shine, sparkle and bling. That’s why Madeleine Vieira’s evening clutches caught my eye. They’re nothing if not shiny, sparkly, and full of bling!

The “Swarovski elements” detailing is all by hand and therefore, the glam clutches are all that much more exquisite. Take a look, ladies! Are these fab finds, or what?

I see these as the perfect clutch for a blingy bride. For the bride, wouldn’t the tiara one be great for a pink-themed wedding? And can’t you see a bride-to-be carrying the ring clutch for her engagement party? Or wouldn’t it be great if a dream man were to insert a diamond jewelry piece into the diamond clutch, using the clutch as a jewelry box?

For the glam girl, well, any special occasion will do. The Madeleine Vieira clutches are sure to be conversation starters and the envy of all.

Happy Halloween everyone!

in Uncategorized

So how did you all spend your Halloween weekend? I spent it doing a little getaway. Last year I was in Germany. This year I was in NJ – Long Beach Island, NJ that is. Certainly not as exotic, I know. But still a first for me. AND I had a blast (partly because I was with great friends, partly because I experienced my first-ever haunted hay ride, spooky maze and a spooktacular trail). Here’s a daytime pic of me on the beach in my new fair isle sweater from Marshall’s. Not bad for $30, right?

I came back to my pinterest account and found some adorable halloween pins that I had to share with all of you. These images prove that Halloween doesn’t have to be cheesy and tacky. Halloween can actually be fashionable. Check out my favorite Chanel-inspired shots!I’ll have to copy this carving next year.

I would love if someone made me this costume in an adult size! What do you think? Are these fab or what?

Style Diary: 1 Red Skirt, 5 ways

in Fashion, Style Diary

I took the skirt from a 2piece Calvin Klein suit and have been using it as a separate lately. Here’s the full suit.

I take weird pleasure in challenging myself to never wear the same look twice. Taking just the red skirt from the suit above I created these work-appropriate outfits. Which one do you like best?

Style Diary: Mink Fur Purse

in Fashion, Style Diary

I bought a mink fur purse at Marshall’s over the summer. Yes mink at Marshall’s. And yes, I purchased something as inappropriate as mink this past summer. I love fur! I find it adds a touch of glamour to anything. Besides, the soft brown mink was screaming to be petted. It all started with an innocent pet. Next thing you know, I have another purse to add to my collection.

The purse, designed by Paolo Masi is made in Italy and has the most beautiful construction and quality. I’ve never heard of the designer and can’t seem to find the designer’s website for the life of me but not being much of a brand whore (ok maybe I’m a little whore-ish when it comes to Chanel), I truly didn’t care.

This past week, now that the weather has finally cooled down, I let my little mink out of the closet. It reminded me and everyone else of my other “puppy purse” which you can see in my earlier blog post about work wear.

You can see from the accordian pleated wrinkles on my skirt that I wore this outfit to work where I sit at my desk 70%of the day. What’s hard to tell from the pictures are the 3-D sort of appliques that make the tweed skirt so unique. Here, I’ve paired the skirt (an amazing Daffy’s find), with my new BCBG top with detachable bow also worn here.

The 2nd time I carried the mink purse, I wore it with this cream Anne Klein dress which I bought on sale at Lord & Taylor last year. I winterized the dress by adding some textured tights and brown accessories such as the Gucci belt, tweed vintage-inspired heels and jewels. That’s 3 necklaces, all layered into one look by the way! I totally got inspired watching Gossip Girl the other day. Though I’m more of a Blair Waldorf than I am Serena, much in the same way, I’m more Charlotte than any of the other SATC girls, I had a major fashion epiphany watching Serena. She wore 3 somewhat clashing necklaces, all different lengths, all at once! Literally, the next day, here I am layering my necklaces resulting in a myriad of in-store compliments and questions regarding my accessories.

Can you tell that I’m totally into the top knot hairdo these days? Here, I’m wearing Paolo Masi’s fur purse with my H&M polka dotted dress and chain-link cardigan. I can’t believe how hot polka dots are these days. They were all over the fall runways. I’m actually ready to giveaway this dress because I’ve styled it about 10 different ways and am getting a bit bored over it. So if you want it, you can have it for just $10 plus shipping. Just leave me a comment with an email to contact you at. It’s a size small.

Fashion Week: Louis Vuitton Spring 2012 and Chanel Fall 2010 Carousels

in Fashion, Fashion Week

I love the idea of a fashionable carnival. In fact, I created an entire store event around the theme which you can read all about here.

So when I saw how the carnival carousel was customized by two of fashion’s most influential brands, I had to take notice. Can you even believe how Chanel customized a revolving carousel out of all their most famous icons. See if you can spot them all, the CCs, pearls, bow and more.

I think the finale is the best when surprisingly, the icons become moving parts that the models elevate and descend with. And I love how Karl leads the model pack away from the carousel as he takes his finale walk. It just emphasizes the fact that he has so many followers.

Yesterday night, I squealed in delight when I saw a similar fashion show- this time led by Louis Vuitton. As you’ll see here, the staging and production value was just as breathtaking and awe-inspiring. This time the models started on the carousel and modeled off the stage, with the designer entering the stage and walking a full round, no models in sight, quite the opposite of how the Chanel show was produced. It’s interesting to see how they tried to change it up in order not to be accused of stealing Chanel’s carousel runway idea. But we all know they did, right?

A-MAZING, no? I simply adored the clothes on the Louis Vuitton Spring 2012 runway! I loved the pastel palette, ladylike silhouettes, shine, sparkle and feathery drama. Being a major Chanel fan, I feel like a traitor for admitting this but I preferred the clothes off the Louis Vuitton runway! As far as the runway staging and production go though, I revert to my Chanel loyalty. I preferred Chanel’s customized carousel and Karl’s grand exit. So, FabGabBlog readers, whose runway show did YOU like more?

Dior Pinball

in Uncategorized

Anyone in the mood for a fashionable game?

Fab Decor: Pink Bedrooms and Boudoirs

in DESIGN/DECOR, Fab Decor

I’m on the lookout for a new duvet set and ran into the below bedroom set from Horschow. Isn’t it fit for a princess?

The Victorian molding in this room and soft pale colors are so sweet, aren’t they? This is a great bedroom set for a lucky girl which brings me to this post’s focus on girly pink boudoirs. Fabulous!

I love this headboard and matching vanity!

This boudoir shot is so vintage glam. And it shows you just how easy it could be to transform any ugly table into a vanity by adding some linen and a mirror topper.

Any of you regular readers know how much I adore chandeliers. It makes this room! Notice how the pink is repeated in the chaise, the chair cushion, candlesticks, stationary and rug. The repeated color helps with the flow of the room and helps create the polished look.

Speaking of chandeliers, check this grand dame out! I love the dramatic statement! And oh how I would love something like this as my dressing room!

For more of my favorite boudoir shots, visit and follow my pinterest!

Style Diary: 1 Shirt, 3 ways

in Fashion

In this post, I’ll show you how I styled this black lace blouse from Zara - a purchase I had made over 5 years ago.

Today I wore the blouse with my new Zara tweed blazer. It hardly shows in the pictures but the blazer has a slight sheen to it since the thread is a bit metallic. Going for the Chanel-inspired look, I wore my chain necklace, leather skirt and Chanel chain purse. I ran our store’s trunk shows, partnership with a local gym, champagne reception and live DJ during a series of work events in this outfit.

I’m also thinking about wearing it next with my DKNY, exposed zipper dress shown here. Worn as an underpinning, I layered it with this sheath dress, while using the same necklace, shoes and purse for a completely different look.

Lastly, the bouse is worn under my bold striped blazer and pants from Bebe. The Rebecca Minkoff purse was free. Yes FREE!! My fabulous co-worker gave it to me – apparently it was a gift from the corporate summit he attended. Only in fashion do you walk away with gifts this amazing!