Full Time Fabulous: Sunglass Hut

Yesterday during my impromptu shopping session in midtown, I stumbled into Sunglass Hut's flagship store on 5th Ave for some not-so-window shopping. During NY Fashion Week, Sunglass Hut announced some amazing news! They're hosting a HUGE contest called "Full Time Fabulous" in which they will be choosing one lucky hopeful to be a Full-time Sunglass Hut blogger! The Grand Prize winner will not only have free accommodations for an entire year in NYC, but also will receive a $100,000/year salary and get flown to top fashion capitals like London and Milan to experience fashion week. I'm giddy! Now to think of a cool concept for my video...

Anyway, if you're into it, click the link for full details on the contest: Full Time Fabulous. Would love to have all your support once I submit in October!

By the way, what do you think of these tortoise-shell Ray Ban wayfarers? Yay or nay?

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Fashion Week Diaries: Angela Simmons & Crew

From left: Me, Angela Simmons, Kanayo Ebi backstage at Custo Barcelona's S/S 2011 Show

 So if you guys were following me @LoveBrownSugar on Twitter during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week then you might have caught a glimpse into the following feature with Angela Simmons. I tweeted out a few sneak peek pics of us backstage with her lovely stylist Kanayo Ebi and Pastry designer Juan Vargas. Well, here's the long-awaited video I've been talking about! Take a peek as Angela talks about her crazy hectic fashion week, Kanayo talks about how she got into the styling business, and Juan discusses his involvement with Pastry shoes. Check it out!

Kickin' It: Fashion's Night Out 2010

Image courtesy www.eighty-vii.com

So I know it's super late and FNO 2010 is already 2 weeks past, but I had an AMAZING time with some awesome people. It was LoveBrownSugar.com's first meet up with friends of the blog and avid readers I've never met so I definitely have to spotlight the amazing time we had that night.

Image courtesy www.eighty-vii.com

We started the night off around 6:30pm at the Ralph Lauren store in hopes to see Janelle Monae perform. Little did we know that the line would be down the block, and she wouldn't be performing until 8:30!

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

So we said "deuces" and hopped to the next location to scout out free drinks and goodie bags...

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

We didn't have to go far! Next door at the Reiss store, they were passing out free cocktails and offering free beauty makeovers sponsored by Rimmel...

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

I promptly hopped into their London-like telephone booth and put on my fanciest British heirs...

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

Next impromptu stop landed us somewhere between Prince and Spring St in Soho, watching N.E.R.D perform in front of the Billionaire Boys Club store. Super live performance, even crazier crowd! From there we were headed to the 3.1 Phillip Lim/ Rag & Bone block party on Mercer.

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

We made a brief stop at the Camper store for, you guessed it, more free cocktails!

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

Cheers!

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

On our way to the block party, we peeked into the Marc Jacobs store and low & behold celebrity stylist June Ambrose appeared like a fairy fashion Godmother! She was styling shoppers at the chic downtown boutique as part of the FNO fun...

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

Next, we bumped into LoveBrownSugar style icon Tracee Ellis Ross. Love this woman! She looked stunning per usual, rocking a black two-piece with a poppin' pink lip...

Image courtesy Tia Hendricks

By 8:30 pm, we finally made it back to the Ralph Lauren store to see lil' miss Janelle Monae perform some of her hits live...

Image courtesy www.eighty-vii.com

After that, we hopped over to the Meatpacking district and bumped into the one and only Diane Von Furstenberg. A fashion legend and a real party girl. She seemed to be having a great time!

Image courtesy www.eighty-vii.com

And of course NY socialite and co-star of reality show The City, Olivia Palermo, made a brief appearance at the DVF store as well...

Our last stop was the Tory Burch store, but we were having too much fun to snap pics. Check out the rest of the night's pictures in the Facebook Album HERE. 

Special shoutout to Tia Hendricks and Shade of Eighty-vii.com for the awesome pics taken that night. I'd also love to thank all the wonderful friends, LoveBrownSugar readers, celebs and super-cool strangers that made FNO such a memorable experience. Be sure to join us next year for Fashion's Night Out 2011!

Fierce or Foolish: Solange at Lavo

 I've grown to love and appreciate Solange's eclectic style. I love the way she puts together her separates in the ensemble above and the 'fro just gives it that extra special touch. It's so beautiful to me, seeing a wild 'fro with a polished look. The top and the skirt are giving me vintage glam and those metallic Mary Jane wedges?! How about I need those in my life, as soon as possible! What do you guys think? Soundoff below!

By the way, if you haven't checked out my exclusive video with the fashionista front row at Zac Posen, check it! She's such a sweetheart:

LBS Runway Report: Monique Lhuillier, Herve Leger, Betsey Johnson

From left: Monique Lhuillier, Betsey Johnson, Herve Leger S/S 2011 shows.

My last few days at Mercedes-Benz Fashion week saw a mixture of different trends from the high-end and always body conscious cocktail dresses at Herve Leger to the quirky downtown rocker looks at Betsey Johnson. One thing is for sure, these next few designers had the most exciting shows, for me, of the entire week...

Herve Leger, Spring 2011

 I loved the sexy yet regal prestige of the Herve Leger show. And for the simple fact that I can count on certain celebs to rock out with these pieces on the red carpet this upcoming season, it excited me to see the preview of what's to come, up close and personal. Herve Leger showed lots of mesh, detailed and pristine ruffles below the waist and tight body-hugging luxe materials up top. View the entire collection in the Facebook Album HERE.

Monique Lhuillier, Spring 2011

Surprising fave Monique Lhuillier was a red carpet stylist's dream with stunning floor-length gowns and rainbow colored asymmetrical frocks crowding the runway. In my opinion, Monique Lhuillier's show was the true definition of a show. I gasped each time a model popped out from behind the stage and onto the runway. That's how amazing the gowns were. View the entire collection in the Facebook Album HERE.

Check out the final walkthrough at Monique Lhuillier:

Betsey Johnson, Spring 2011

And of course, the most fun show of the entire week by FAR was the Betsey Johnson S/S 2011 show. From the upbeat tunes to the amazing punk rock meet grunge meets nautical pinup looks and down to the lace thongs Betsey delicately placed in each goodie bag, I had an absolute ball at the show! Of course Betsey did her signature cartwheel, and the show's looks were girly, quirky, naughty and fun just like Betsey! View the entire collection in the Facebook Album HERE.

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Fashion Week Diaries: Vashtie

Backstage at Custo Barcelona, LoveBrownSugar caught up with "Downtown's Sweetheart" Va$htie. She's an artist, director, designer and all-around fly girl at the age of 25. Check out what she has to say about fashion week and her personal style philosophy...

Keep up with Va$htie at her BLOG and @Vashtie on Twitter

Spotted: Estelle at Max Azria

 LoveBrownSugar caught up with Estelle to talk about her fashion week "hangover" and her love for Max Azria...(we heart her)

LBS Runway Report: Max Azria, Custo Barcelona & Korto Momolu

(Left to right: Korto Momolu, Custo Barcelona, Max Azria S/S 2011)

The shows on Day 4 ran the gamut from chic minimalism to eclectic edge. From brunch-ready pant suits at Max Azria to feathered couture pieces at Custo Barcelona, the tents surely had us in for a treat...

Though neutrals and pale pastels set the tone for the Max Azria S/S 2011 collection, there were some unexpected printed pieces I absolutely fell in love with, like the maxi dress above. Overall the collection exuded effortless chic. Pant suits and separates perfect for uptown weekend brunches and "ladies who lunch" were prevalent, as were A-list celebs front row like Solange Knowles and Estelle. See images of the full collection in my Facebook Album HERE.

 Images courtesy Custo Barcelona via WhatsHaute.com

What's not to love about Custo Barcelona? The S/S 2011 collection was fun and fancy-free per usual. Far from the minimalist collections I had gotten so accustomed to seeing, Custo stuck with their traditional aesthetic and showed a funky yet well-rounded mix of pieces embellished with fringe and feathers. I also got a chance to sneak backstage for the Custo show and kick it with Angela Simmons and her stylist Kanayo Ebi.

 Fashion Week Diary video coming soon to the LoveBrownSugarTV channel!

First let me say, I absolutely think Korto was robbed during Season 5 of Project Runway. She was my fave from the beginning and she's a brilliant designer. I can sefely say, I wanted to own every piece that went down the runway at Korto Momolu's Spring 2011 show.From really stunning printed maxi dresses to cocktail-ready separates and chic work attire, Korto Momolu showed a collection fit for a queen.

For up-to-the minute updates on LoveBrownSugar's fashion week coverage, follow @LoveBrownSugar on Twitter and stay tuned to LoveBrownSugarTV.