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Fab Body Guide: Elongate Yourself

FabSugar — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:00:08 -0800

You've all heard that black makes you look slimmer and taller. While that's true, it's not the only trick in the book. There are a dozen other ways to elongate yourself without having to look goth. Take a look at the real-life examples below. For The Spirit LA premiere, Eva Mendes chose a Bill Blass maxi that, because it grazed the carpet, made her appear taller. Vertical stripes, as shown in the center editorial, and long cardigans, like on Katie Holmes, can also do the trick. Proceed for more tips.

Maxi Dresses: Like in Eva's case, maxi dresses give the illusion of tallness because they provide one straight line from top to bottom, without any interruptions.
Long Cardigans: It's a misconception that everything long makes you look tall. But a long cardigan, past your waist, is one casual way to do it. The darker the color the better.
Long, Wide-Leg Trousers: Be sure to find a style that grazes the floor, and preferably covers your shoes. They're never to be worn with flats, only high heels!
Platforms: It's no secret that platform shoes can literally add inches to your height. For a more subtle approach, choose a shoe with a hidden platform.
Vertical Stripes: Unlike horizontal stripes, which cut you off, vertical stripes keep going and going.

To see more tips, and to shop a widget of elongating pieces, read more.

Trench Coats: A thigh-length trench coat is a slick, sophisticated way to appear tall, especially when worn with over-the-knee boots. Avoid anything longer than the knee, please.
Over-the-Knee Boots: Speaking of over-the-knee boots, ones with high heels will give you an extra boost. Just be sure to wear them with demure clothing; you don't want to look sketchy.
Dark Colors: Black, dark brown, navy, dark gray - these moody hues and others like them are right for looking slim and tall.
Long, Skinny Scarves: Throw on an extra long, extra skinny scarf to take the focus away from your outfit.
Turtlenecks: These give the illusion of a long neck, so they're perfect for those who have a short one.
High-Waist Styles: Whether its skirts, shorts, or pants, if you have a flat tummy, high-waisted styles can make your torso appear inches longer.
Opera Gloves: Unlike cropped gloves, opera styles go past your elbow and make your arms appear super slender.

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Nicole Richie Designs New Contemporary Line!

FabSugar — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:37:24 -0700

Nicole Richie is a new mom again, but that's not stopping her from expanding her fashion empire. Along with House of Harlow 1960 and a maternity line for A Pea in the Pod, she is designing a women's contemporary line called Winter Kate (Harlow's middle names). The 37-piece collection, which was inspired by peacocks and other birds, includes tops, vests, bed jackets, and dresses - mini, long slip-style, and kimono-sleeve maxis.

"Fashion should be accessible. That was my philosophy when designing House of Harlow 1960 and it remains my philosophy for Winter Kate," she said. Prices start at $35 and go up to $598 for leather pieces. Look out for the line in February at stores like Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale’s, Intermix, and Kitson.
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Frock Me Baby: To the Maxi

FabSugar — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:00:22 -0800

I recently accompanied my friend on her hunt for the perfect party dress. Not too long after our search we discovered this Banana Republic Silk Maxi Dress in Peacock ($175). It looked good on the hanger but came to life when she slipped it on. Maxis tend to have that breath-taking effect. They make you look long and lean, especially if you wear your tallest heels. If you're in the mood for a long dress this year, take it to the maxi. Shorter gals, don't overlook the maxi; my friend is 5'2" and it made her look heads taller.

Ten Maxi Gowns for a Formal Wedding

FabSugarUK — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 03:00:42 -0700

I love any excuse to dress up, but preparing myself for a formal event is one of my favourites. These kind of events don't come along every day (unless you're a celebrity), so make the most of them in a long flowing, maxi dress.

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Interview With Liz Lange: Pregnancy Mogul Relaunches Line!

LilSugar — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 06:00:45 -0800

The woman who introduced the world to chic, form-fitting designs that celebrate the pregnant woman's bod is shaking things up again! Six years after introducing her maternity line to the masses through her collaboration with Target, Liz Lange is debuting more beautiful duds to flatter burgeoning bellies.

The Brown University grad and former Vogue editor, is relaunching her high-end line of maternity fashions after taking a year-long hiatus to reassess her business. The new Liz Lange Collection, which hits maternity shops and Nordstrom.com this week, includes dresses, silk blouses, skirts, pants, sweaters, jackets, and for the first time - denim!

The designer took some time to chat with us about her latest line, how to get the most bang for your buck with a maternity wardrobe and the ways she juggles work and motherhood.

lilsugar: Tell us about the new line. What are you most excited about?

Liz Lange: Even though I adore the collection that we do for Target, my roots and my beginnings are always in the high-end collection. That’s where I started it all and that’s where I got to work one-on-one with customers and with all of the celebrities I dressed over the years. We took two seasons off and so I'm just so excited to be relaunching in general. It’s really a continuation of everything we always did. We’ve always been about really, really wearable clothing even when we do trends, its always in a pretty and wearable way and not too out there. Really good quality stretch fabrics, clean silhouettes and classic American style, very uptown NYC, where I got my start.

To see the rest of Liz Lange's answer and her thoughts on the pregnant figure, read more.

One thing that is somewhat new about it is that I was never able to do denim in the collection before. It was always something that we would offer in our shops, we would just take in other brands, but I was never able to source it properly. So we found this phenomenal denim resource and now we are doing all Liz Lange branded denim and it comes in like every different wash – from the lightest to the darkest – all different silhouettes – the pencil, the boot, all of them – and it has our signature chunky gold hardware and all the rivets all the detail is Liz Lange branded and of course it is all super-stretchy. So I’m really excited about that.

I have a personal love of dresses and I think we’ve done a lot of really great dresses this Spring in all different ways. A lot of stretch silk dresses. We’ve done short dresses, little shifts, wear to work dresses, long, maxi-style dresses, short dresses with matching jackets that feel very 1960’s clean and classic - great to wear to work. I always think of our collection as dressing a pregnant woman in all of her needs. I find that so many pregnant woman today [are] working women, executives, and I think we have always been a great resource for that. We have a lot of great suiting, so its not just about great denim and t-shirts and little dresses, although we have all of that.

lilsugar: Women tend to complain about their figures during pregnancy, but you celebrate the expectant body with your designs?

Liz Lange: That’s just what I’ve always believed. I feel that pregnancy is a really, really beautiful time and I do think that the world has kind of come around to that - with the celebrities showing off their bodies on the red carpet all the time now. I started the line over ten years ago because I saw a friend wearing maternity clothing. I hadn’t been pregnant yet, and when she took off the maternity clothing and just put on one of her old sweater that was stretchy and still kind of working, I thought, my God, she looks so much tinier in that little sweater where I’m just seeing her belly than in that big schemata she walked in wearing. So I am a firm believer and that is why I have always used so many stretch fabrics because I don’t want to have to make things oversized, but I understand that a woman’s body is constantly growing, so stretch fabric allows it to be a little fitted and still grow with you.

lilsugar: Were you comfortable with your own body during your pregnancies?

Liz Lange: I certainly wore all of my own clothing. My children are 8 and 10. My first pregnancy was during the first year of my business. It was a very small business back then and I only had about eight designs on the line and then with my daughter two years later it had grown quite a bit. I would say it was with both pregnancies that really helped me define and grow my business. In the beginning I was very inspired by Donna Karan. [She] had her eight easy pieces, and I felt that my collection, when I first got started, would just be these eight easy pieces and it came in like navy, chocolate brown or charcoal gray and they were very, very fine Italian stretch wool and I did a cashmere twin set that was one of the eight pieces and it was literally that you just picked the color and if you had the eight pieces you could just mix and match and that would be your wardrobe. And that still, in a weird way, is the essence of my collection. But when I was pregnant I discovered, low and behold, eight pieces is not enough. 'Maybe today I don’t feel like wearing a pencil skirt, I want to wear a short A-line skirt.' Or 'Hey I feel like wearing a t-shirt and I didn’t have one on the line.' So I started to grow the line based on my personal needs. At that time I didn’t want there ever to be any prints or patterns and then I realized, 'Gee, I’m pregnant for nine months and sometimes I feel like wearing a print or a pattern.' So all of that stuff evolved during my pregnancy.

Check out what Liz Lange had to say about shopping for a maternity wardrobe in tough economic times and what to expect from her Target collection in tomorrow's post. View the fabulous selections from her new line below.

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Fab Flash: Dress Length Reflects Economy

FabSugarUK — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 06:00:00 -0800

Economists are not big fans of maxi dresses. Not because they like to see a lot of leg (although this may also be the case) but because it is believed that the length of dresses reflect the state of the economy, "Hemlines go up in a boom, down in a recession." Well, as the credit crunch takes hold the red carpet is reflecting this idea with Agyness Deyn, Angelina Jolie and Joss Stone all opting for maxi dresses.

To keep reading and for suggested dresses read more.

Many believe that this way of covering up is actually an act of false modesty. Sonia Rykiel commented, "The thing about the long silhouette is that it is an intelligent way of dressing – light and powerful, hiding what needs to be hidden, and showing what needs to be shown."

Although the style is good news for most as the shape covers a multitude of sins, it isn't an easy style for shorter women. In this case, it's best to go for a fitted dress with chunky accessories and big shoes.

There are plenty of long dresses currently available and although they are more pricey than a mini (the extra fabric needed explains that) they are usually such a classic style that you can keep them forever. See below for some style on offer right now.

Black Silver Trim Maxi Dress - £55.00	Long Sleeve Maxi Dress - £50.00
Per Una Purple Mesh Dress and Necklace - £49.50	Aminaka Wilmont Long harness dress - £582.34
Temperley London Long sultan dress - £1,395.00	Ossie Clark - £439.00

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The Look For Less: Gwen Stefani's Twelfth St. by Cynthia Vincent Maxi

FabSugar — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 02:00:22 -0700

An adorably pregnant Gwen Stefani recently played in the park with Gavin and Kingston. While Pop was examining her baby bump, I was more focused on what was covering that growing belly: Twelfth St. by Cynthia Vincent's ruffle maxi dress ($372). Mile-long maxis grazed the Spring runways; now let's have them sweep the streets without massacring our wallets!

To see the look for less, read more

Not only is this Arden B. Smocked Maxi Dress ($80, originally $118) similar to Gwen's maxi dress, it's also on sale! It has a mixed flower print and exudes the boho-chic vibe that the singer so loves. Preggers or not, this maxi will be a perfect Spring companion. Whether you wear it with heels or flats, make sure it touches the floor like Gwen's. Flooding in a maxi is not cute.

Flynet

March Shopping Madness: Mile-Long Maxis

FabSugar — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 14:00:22 -0700

Maxi dresses are the ultimate way to exude a stylish laid-back look. Just look at Stella McCartney's Spring '08 collection, which was filled with feminine floral maxis. Also take cue from Nicole Richie who recently frolicked LA in a paisley maxi dress. There's something to be said about a dress that can make you look put together and feel comfy at the same time. Do what you will with the neckline but make sure your maxi is floor length. After all, anything shorter wouldn't be a mile-long maxi.

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Dress You Up! Maxi Dresses

FabSugar — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 09:11:22 -0700

Ok so this first model in a serious maxi dress looks like a tree, but that is the effect the longest dress of all can help one achieve. I was actually just on a hunt for a maxi dress and ended up scoring an awesome black silk Corey Lynn Calter one. I wore it to Fashion Week Live last month. I gotta tell ya, I stood out (in a good way) amongst all the legs and got several compliments. My analysis: maxi dresses are the next 'It' dress. After all, the only way to go after the mini dress is down, way down. I wore mine with some exotic flats because I am tall; if you're on the shorter side, these look retro redone with a solid pair of wood-heeled wedges.

Twinkle by Wenlan 'Midsummer' Long Dress, $497.

To see more, read more

INC International Concepts® Printed Color-Block Maxi Dress, $129.

T Bags Long Convertible Dress in Yellow Print, $220.

Fab Redux: LBDisco

FabSugar — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 14:00:22 -0700

I recently had a long day of wine tasting in Napa Valley, got home around 7 p.m., and had to get ready to go back out again. As fun as a social life is, it can be exhausting and challenging.

Challenging, in the closet arena. I definitely have some go-to items for lazy Sundays - jeans, moccasins, cardigans - but a Friday night on the town? So I grabbed my black Corey Lynn Calter maxi dress, threw on tons of jewelry, a vintage clutch, a light-washed jean jacket (to dress the look down), and called it a night. And yes, I felt quite Fab.

This black disco dress, size small ($34), can also do the LBDisco. You don't have to be an expert to learn these moves. Plus, if you're not so sure about loud print maxi dresses, this caters to the trend in a more subtle way.

Vince Long Cardigan - $320.00	Cherub Trouser - $168.00
Simple Jersey Scarf - $6.80	Corsair Leather Over-The-Knee Boot - $178.00
Nordstrom Faux LaceUp Long Leather Gloves - $148.00	City Style Leather Trench - $129.95
J Brand - $187.00	Splendid Long Cardigan - $70.00
Tweed Wide Leg Pant - $34.99	Rachel Pally Swing Turtleneck - $141.00
V-line platform pump - $72.00	Heathered Turtleneck Tunic - $15.80
Lauren by Ralph Lauren Tunic Swimsuit Cover-Up - $61.00	Halter Maxi Dress - $98.00
Raven Tailored Riley Stripe Trouser - $242.00	Zipper High Waisted Skirt - $22.99
Long Ultra-Knit Skirt - $59.50	Yana Wrap Cashmere - $375.00
BR Monogram cashmere long cardigan - $275.00	0815LovesPeace by 8.15 August Fifteenth Hooded Tunic - $78.00
James Perse Racerback Maxi Dress - $155.00

Yellow and Blue Print Gowns by Terani - $498.00	Belted Maxi Dress - $32.99
House of Dereon Women's Long One Shoulder Blue Multi Dress - $301.00	Silk & cashmere v-neck sweaterdress - $118.00
Tadashi gold jersey twist front evening dress - $237.00	Cachet One Shoulder Gown with Bead Detail - $168.00
Convertible Hanna Ball Gown - $325.00	Velvet Burnout Gowns from Laundry by Shelli Segal - $385.00
A.B.S. Long V-Neck Dress - $290.50	Stellvo Long Gown - $348.00
Halter maxi dress - $128.00	Sunner Casablanca Long Dress - $465.00
Alice + Olivia Long Ombre Rosette Tube Dress - $396.00	Rachel Pally 'Bev' Maxi Dress - $255.00
Diane von Furstenberg Nikki Gown - $650.00	Crochet Trim Maxi Dress - $46.00
Flirty little one-shoulder maxi dress - $128.00	Silk maxi dress - $175.00

Twelfth St. by Cynthia Vincent Long Strapless Dress - $394.00	Print maxi halter dress - $89.00
Women's Maxi Tube Dresses - $29.50	Mint Jodi Arnold Golden Globe Dress - $880.00
Lacey Parker Silk Ombre Gown - $398.00	DKNY Long Color Block Wrap Dress - $425.00
Diane von Furstenberg Maui Maxi Dress - $398.00	By Malene Birger Shevon Desert Rose Long Dress in Suede - $442.00
T-Bags Printed maxi dress - $220.00	Ella Moss Joni Long Dress - $171.00
Aqua Printed Maxi Shirred Tube Dress: A Bloomingdale's Exclusive - $98.00	A Common Thread Halter Dress - $345.00
Rosarito Maxi Dress - $178.00