Gift Guidance for that Special Guy

With Valentine’s Day coming up, time is of the essence! Valentine’s Day isn’t just for the ladies; the mister in your life deserves some love and attention on this day too!

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Finding the "perfect" gift for your significant other is very difficult. You’re stuck with a plethora of options and are constantly trying to top the last gift you gave. If you’re like me, finding a gift for the opposite sex is completely different from finding something for your girlfriends. Get your lover to give up a few hints of what he might like, without being too obvious:

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Know his interests and find out more about it. Does he have certain hobbies or sports that he loves doing? Has he talked about a certain items that he wants or his favorite place to get his gear/supplies? Having your partner talk about his sports/ hobbies and why he likes doing it can offer insight into his interests. If you still can’t find exactly what he likes, give ‘em a gift certificate to his favorite places.

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Listen to daily conversations for clues. Sometime he may like a type of clothing or food and express how much he likes it. Getting a general notion of what he likes and doesn’t like can help you to narrow down your choices.

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Notice details. Does he have certain routines? Does he always grab coffee for breakfast or take his iPod with him to exercise? Sometimes the best gifts are the ones he uses daily. A man can always appreciate a gift he can use everyday!

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If you’re out of tangible options, you can always choose an activity for both of you to do. Spending time with your significant other is always the best gift! Make a date night, spend the day roaming together, cook a meal together, exercise together...the possibilities are endless! Set a special time or day for just you two and enjoy! Quality time outshines any material object!

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 Hope you all have a great week!

  

XOXO,

Deanna

Model Behavior

Chanel Iman

Victoria's Secret's Baby

photo: fanshare.com

In March of 2011, I was living in Manhattan and had the privilege of working backstage at Lincoln Center during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. What. A. Rush! I got to work for J. Mendel and Oscar de la Renta, dressing big name models like Arizona Muse and Chanel Iman and sending them down the runway (don't know who they are? Pick up a Vogue, my dear). In the amount of time I have spent with models (my time in NYC and my time as a stylist makes this amount quite large) I really have loved to learn who these beautiful people are, underneath the glitter and glam. These girls may be 6 feet tall, and two inches wide, with razor sharp cheek bones, but under it all these girls are flawed, boy-loving, twitter-tweeting, tired-at-the-end-of-the-day women; just like you and me.

Cara Delvigne

Fashion's Favorite Tomboy

photo: tumblr.caradelvigne.com

In honor of this week's [snowy]  Fashion Week, I would like to highlight some of the faces that sell the luxurious clothes we see on the runway and in the pages of our favorite fashion magazines. Models get a bad rap for being too pouty, too skinny, too stuck up, and [the most overused] too fake. I would like to state that the girls featured in this blog, like so many others, are very real. I'm sure if I ever had the chance, they would be worth getting to know.

Coco Rocha

The Dancing Queen

photo: cocorocha.com

Meet a handful of my favorite models. Next time you flip through a magazine, or your style.com app, take a look at the names of these women. Google them, watch their interviews, find out about their extraordinary lives. You may discover that they are women doing their jobs, living their dreams, and sharing their lives on instagram; and maybe that's just like you.

Natalia Vodianova

The Real Cinderella

photo: maxone.com

Kate Upton

The Chameleon

photo: fanpop.com

Abbey Lee Kershaw

The Rockstar

photo: ragpony.com

Happy MB Fashion Week,

Danielle Cason

Who are you anyway?  Self expression manifests itself through different forms.  There is constant reinvention of ones self as you age, mature, and even sometimes regress.  

A little quirky and square in my day, never a follower, and usually struggling with conformity. 

So far in my years of life experience I still manage to push the fashion envelope.  I attempt to be discretely trendy by reworking vintage into my current urban wardrobe, or mixing edgy with pretty, without being over the top.  However you like to self express, do it.  If it's weird, oh well...someone is bound to give you a funny look.  My designs reflect my personality and quite frankly my husband thinks I'm crazy.

Pictures by Ryan Cason, VKP Photography and CHIEF

Models: Fatima McElveen & Danielle Cason

Bottom 3 designs by CHIEF

Until next time...

XOXO, 

CHIEF

Valentine's BOGO Sale!

ENJOY!

XOXO,
MILIEU

What's Knot to Love?

Macrame  is an ancient art of decorative knotting, weaving and plaiting dating back as early as the Babylonian period. It was used in history worldwide for practical purposes, fishermen used macrame to make netting material used for holding objects. 

 Macrame comes from the Arabic word “migramah.” Migramah is the detailed decorative fringe on camels and horses. It also came from the Turkish word “makrama” which meant the way in which towels and fabric was secured at the edges.

Macrame became more of a decorative art and was especially popular in 16^th century Italy, where knotted lace became a specialty art in Genoa. Detailed fringe tassels and lace-like knotting adorned the edges of furniture. 

Macrame became popular in the Western world around the 1960s and 70s. It was a decorative and functional way to make clothing and furniture like plant holders and hammocks. 

Another subgroup of macrame is micro-macrame, which involves intricate beading and smaller materials used for making jewelry.

Macrame is most popular now as jewelry, clothing, and accessories.

Macrame is a meticulous art that requires personal creativity and innovation. It can be used to make one of a kind detailed pieces using beads and precious stones. Macrame is fun for both beginners and experts and uses relatively inexpensive materials. 

XOXO,

Deanna

Historical information courtesy of: http://macramecollective.com/news/?p=553

Images courtesy of the following sites, in order of appearance:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/75670696/handmade-ooak-macrame-vintage-retro?ref=sr_gallery_6&ga_search_query=macrame+furniture&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=all

http://thetextileblog.blogspot.com/2010/07/macrame-decorative-work.html

http://italian-needlework.blogspot.com/2010/04/tassels-and-macrame.html

http://www.designsponge.com/2010/04/smalltown-macrame.html

http://www.etsy.com/shop/MacrameDolls?ga_search_query=micromacrame+jewelry&ga_order=price_desc&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_page=2&ga_search_type=all&ref=sr_gallery_2

http://smittenbyaknot.com/2010/10/09/matthew-williamson-for-2011/

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SpiritYSol?ref=seller_info

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