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View of the "City on the Straits" from across the Detroit River. Photo by Bob Rolfson

Nail Polish Color Daisy

(2011-06-24) A recent issue of WWD Beauty Inc contains a rainbow colored daisy with the petal colors keyed to nail polish colors.

. The caption reads, in part

Bright colors lift our spirits, and nail polish is a cheap, fun way to add a splash of energy to your life.

Our idea is that the same goes for a brightly colored fabric belt. Not only are they cheap, but they're also easier to remove than nail polish.

So, just for fun, let us follow the same 11 colors around the flower but match them up with canvas belts instead of nail polish:

These belts may be view all together here.

Bright Block Colors

(2011-03-23) The center of the Milky Way is probably closer to us than the catwalks of New York, but we do love color. So Lucie Greene's article in the Financial Times style section caught our eye. Simple bright colors in large patches on designer clothing:

. Ms Greene observes

The beauty of this trend is that pieces are predominantly separates, so even beyond the season of neon, canary yellow, vermilion and aqua, it is possible to imagine a time when you can deconstruct and tone down all purchases, thus endowing them with continued relevance. Worn together, though, the look takes gumption.

And if you're lacking that gumption, Ed Burstell, suggests an easier route: color-blocked accessories. Reading this advice, I thought of Fergie's look on Idol last Thursday night: primary colors on earrings and bangles with bright white dress as foil.

A brightly colored belt could work, too. A hot pink canvas belt, or maybe flash green, . Or maybe a glossy turquoise leather belt would work: .

Subtle Signals

(2010-08-09) The colorful, infamous Candian financier Lord Black was released from prison last month. Photos appeared in the press of him emerging from the courthouse with Barbara Amiel by his side and surrounded by reporters. Here's an example:

We were reminded of these photos by a scholarly article that appeared recently regarding the discrete signaling among the fashion cognoscenti. The idea, I guess, is that people use clothing and accessories to signal inclusion in a group. The problem with fashion is that the use of a logo to signal inclusion in an exclusive group is easy enough to counterfeit. One strategy to get around this is to encode the signal in such a way that non-members don't even know it is a signal.

There stands Barbara Amiel in the glaring light of the voracious press with perhaps the most famous logo in the world loudly emblazoned on her scarf. Is she signaling garishly? Personally, I'm reminded of Sigmund Freud; sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. And a beautiful scarf is just a scarf. Her business is simply to stand by her husband.

Just a Glimpse

(2010-08-08) We often speak to our customers, but, being on-line, we rarely get to see what they do with their purchases. In spinning the tale of Mark Hurd's demise at Hewlett-Packard, the New York Times included this photo of Jodie Fisher:

So there we have an example of what to do with a black rhinestone western belt like the ones we sell here. Faded blue jeans, black leather top–rather different than the (comparative) innocents captured by the Sartorialist below.

The Times article and credits may be found here.

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