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Transition winter to spring: Layered scarves

Renae Virata — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:13:35 +0000

by Renae Virata

Here’s a fun way to transition between winter and spring: layered scarves. Mixing textures, colors, and weights is an effortless way to up your scarf look a notch for easy, casual chic.

I was walking around town on this unusually warm winter day when I spotted two girls walking together. One had a regular, pashmina-like scarf, and the other rocked a beautiful floral silk scarf. Somehow, my fashion senses got ahold of me at just that moment, and I visually meshed the two looks together. So, as soon as I got home, I decided to see for myself how layering a silk scarf over a warmer scarf would look – and love it!

How to Do It

Wrap your longer, knit scarf (a medium-weight, pashmina style is best) around your neck so that the ends hang on your chest.
Tie the lighter, woven scarf into a loose kerchief around your neck.
Position the lighter scarf so that it bunches slightly on the top and rests loosely on the wrapped part of the longer scarf.

Travelistas - do you have a do-it-yourself look that either helps you transition between seasons or maximizes this season’s wardobe? Send them in, and we’ll share it: renae@wearevertheweather.com.

Halloween makeup idea: Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos)

Renae Virata — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 21:19:19 +0000

Guess who?

If you want to do something a little more cultural this Halloween, opt for a hauntingly beautiful Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, face.

So why do people dress up and paint their faces the way they do for Dia de los Muertos? Kelly Coleman, a fashionista who knows about this special holiday (often celebrated in Latin countries) explains it well.

“In Mexico and other Latin American countries, the holiday is referred to as the Day of the Dead. In America it has been transformed from the Scottish celebration of ‘All Hallows Eve’ to the present day tradition of Halloween…All holidays possess their own traditions, and the Day of the Dead has some of the most unique – the requirement of [specific] costume attire. A literal means of changing one’s identity for a single day, it…encourages participants to passionately express their deepest desires, fears and fantasies.”

My friend Sari Motley of sarimotley Cosmetics met up with me once again to help me put together a DOTD look that you can replicate!. All it takes is a steady hand, three clown makeup colors (red, black, and white), black eyeliner, a black waterline pencil, stencils, and lots of imagination!

What I normally look like…

…and with my DOTD face on!

Step 1: Apply white clown makeup all over your face, lips, neck, and decolletage (wherever your skin will be exposed from the chest up). Be sure to leave large circles unpainted around your eyes and on your nose in a spade shape where the black makeup will go.

Step 2: After the white makeup dries, take a fine brush, and outline the shapes of the circles and the spade on your nose with the black makeup. Completely fill in the shapes. Around the eyes, be sure to cover the lids and brows, too.

Step 3: Take your black waterline pencil, and fill in your waterline on both the top and bottom lids.

Step 4: Take your black liquid liner and stroke on a slightly upward line on either side of your mouth from the corners, about 2 inches in length. Starting from the outside in, draw perpendicular lines for the teeth about 1/2 inch apart. Each line should gradually become longer but centered. Finish the mouth with lines on the upper and lower lips, extending the lines just beyond the lipline.

Step 5: This is where you get creative! Try stenciled roses (filled in red, outlined in black, and with green leaves), swirl on lines on the cheeks and add leaves, fill black hearts in red (try a bleeding heart of Mary, if your skilled enough), create an interesting frame of doily-like scallops around the edge. The important thing to remember for the perfect face is a lot of deep, rich color, roses, vines, and decorative swirls.

Extras

Sari did a super basic face. Extra makeup touches in addition to hair and clothes is key to completing your look. Wear all black, place roses in your hair, curl it for formal, colonial-Mexico hair. Be sure to do your hair beforehand and keep off your face with a headband so you don’t accidentally smear makeup as you work on your makeup. Add a fan and a delicate fringed shawl, and you’re ready for an interesting night out! Another tip: As gorgeous as you will no doubt look in your new façade, maybe it’s a good idea to carry a pic of what you usually look like…just in case.

Four do-it-yourself halloween costumes

Renae Virata — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 20:36:33 +0000

by Renae Virata

With Halloween just around the corner, it can be stressful trying to figure out just the perfect costume. Should you brave the aisles at the local costume shop amongst all the picked-over sexy costumes or end up with something less-than-sexy in favor of something quick? Why not shop your own closet? The treasures within your own wardrobe may have just the things you’ll need for a great Halloween outfit!

What are your ideas? Do you love these ideas or have something to add? Leave your comments below! And don’t forget to try our Fashion Forecast tool on our homepage at WeareverTheWeather.com to get the weather forecast and shopping results to match!

1. Flashdance: All you need for this cute and sexy look is a gray sweatshirt, shiny black leggings, and hot pink or purple leggings. The hair, too, is most important. Jennifer Beals rocked that frizzy/curly 80’s short-hairstyle, and so should you!

Photo | CarinaeCasting.com

2. Vampire: Make it simple! It’s all about blood and fangs, so if you can find a tight black dress (long or short), fishnet tights and fierce-looking stilettos, all you’ll need to get are fangs, fake blood, and white makeup to pale you down. Super light colored contacts don’t hurt, either! Don’t forget to do a vampy smoky eye and blood-red lips for a totally classic Dracula. A black cape or simple shiny red cloth tied around your shoulders finishes it.

Photo | WomenVampireCostume.net

3. Pagaent girl: With all the reality shows on TV focused on beauty pagaents for little girls, why not do the grown-up version? Simply take a fabulous sparkly gown or formal dress; make a sash (be playful and write something kitschy like “Miss-Demeanor” or something that your friends will know is so “Miss” you) with either handwritten, stenciled, or sticker letters; a tiara or crown (like you don’t already have one or have a friend who does!); glam heels; and, of course, the overdone makeup complete with ridiculously long lashes.

Photo | best-hairstyles.info

4. Mommie Dearest (à la Joan Crawford)

Okay, weirdly, I can never tear myself away from this movie when it comes on TV (as I am sure many of you do but will not as readily admit!). Maybe it’s the era, the behind-the-scenes look at a seemingly flawless film star, or the derision towards wire hangers that I share with Ms. Crawford. In any case, this costume is a snap to put together. All you need is an austere black dress; curled hair or a short, curly brown wig; red lipstick; lightly smeared on white clown makeup, and a white headband to push the hair out of your face. Carry around a few wire hangers, and you’re good to go!

Photo | webomatica.com

5. Naughty teacher

A pair of glasses (cheap ones are sold at Walgreens or CVS for, like, $2.00!), fishnets, heels, a mini-skirt, button-down tied at the waist, a cardigan over it, hair in a bun, and…voila! Instant “Hot for Teacher” look!

Freebie: Quick hippie hair

Renae Virata — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 18:10:22 +0000

by Renae Virata

What do you do when you’re on vacation and having a questionable (or lazy) hair day? You improvise. That’s what my gorgeous travel buddy Eva did when we went to the Bahamas. What I was using as a simple hair accessory to keep my hair out of my face when I worked out she was using as a chic hippie hair band. Genius! Check it out below.

This will also be great for outdoor festivals and a fresh look for your next soiree or pool party. And you don’t have to stick to a plain workout elastic. Try a beaded version for a little more sparkle.

Clever Travelistas: What did you improvise with to make a totally new fashion piece? Leave your comments below and share them with everyone!

This is my workout headband - but not according to Eva.

What to do with an old bridesmaid’s dress

Renae Virata — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:38:14 +0000

Anyone who’s ever been a bridesmaid in a wedding knows full well what happens to that poofy, sad dress after its moment has passed. It ends up in the back of the closet in its original dryclean plastic never to be seen by human eyes again (until you clean out your closet or move). But it doesn’t have to be a total waste! Here are some ideas on how to find a wearable place in your wardrobe for your old bridesmaid dresses.

Turn a poofy dress into a cool skirt.

Turn that poofy dress into a cool cocktail skirt

Dresses that have that indescribable “scratchy” taffeta material can find new life as a fun cocktail skirt. Just get your seamstress to chop off the top portion and to shorten the skirt portion to a length that hits just at or above the knee (depending on the skirt’s structure and length). If the dress has an attached sash, keep it as a built-in belt or remove it as a separate piece that you can wear with other outfits. Wear your new skirt with a turtleneck in the winter or a simple, solid-colored cotton tank in the spring and accent with an awesome strand of pearls, layers of chains, or a long pendant necklace.

Take it off

Chop off the sleeves, shorten it, or make it strapless. With the help of your seamstress or a crafty friend, you can find a number of simple ways to make the dress work just by reducing it to its best parts.

Break out the paintbrush and go to town!

Get REALLY crafty

Remember that adorable Kenley from season 5 of Project Runway? She got really creative with paint and won rave reviews from the judges. You can do the same and have a ton of grade-school art-class fun with fabric paints. This will especially work well on those dresses with that aforementioned “scratchy” taffeta material. Just be sure to plan out your pattern on paper first and sketch it on the dress or use stencils to create cool designs on the front, to the side, or on the bottom.

You can also add different materials to create completely new looks. Take the top from a strapless dress and add straps or have a separate knit or woven material sewn for the bodice, keeping the bandeau part in tact. Shorten a dress and add a cool contrasting but complementary material as a border on the bottom.

Bare essentials

Strip the dress to its bare minimum by removing all those extras (floral attachments, sashes, lace, etc.). Add a crinoline skirt underneath a stiff and shortened cocktail-like dress. Top off with a cool sash belt in the same color in a whimsical pattern like polka dots or stripes for a retro look. How about shortening those gloves and wearing them out for a night on the town? Or you can slim down a dress to create a simple sheath.

Get creative, work with your friends, look through magazines, and consult with your seamstress to get some great ideas on what to do with that dress. It’s fun, it’s green, and it’s the best way to get more bang for your buck from that $200 dress!