Blue Jean Baby, L.A. Lady

This afternoon, on my Starbucks run, I saw a flyer advertising a fundraiser for the local ballet, and on it, this picture:

Photo by Britta Rivera

Now, my first thought was, "Wow, that is a gorgeous photo."  My second thought, and what brings me to this post, was, "I totally want to start a new fashion trend."  NO!  I do not want to pull out the old tutus and point shoes and wear them to work!  I'm not completely insane (no comment, Mom), but I love the juxtaposition of the hard, cold vintage jewelry against the filmy material of the dance costume.  The edge and the frills.  How can I make this something I can wear to the mall and not get funny looks?

So, ladies and gents, I issued myself a challenge (CHALLENGE!!!), and created two looks that incorporate ballet-inspired clothing with vintage accessories.  One's for day, the other's for night.  To keep things easy and relatively cheap, all items can be found at Forever21.com.

Look 1:  Day

*Photos by Forever 21
Just so you know, it is really freaking hard to get the pictures lined up in Blogger.  The chiffon top is ballet pink, and has a similar flow to a dance skirt.  The gray rhinestone studded skinny jeans are a nod to the rhinestone fishnet tights coveted by pretty much every dancer I've ever met.  Black suede platform pumps give the height of pointe shoes, and remind me of the moleskin placed on the toes of the dance shoes.  Then we have the "vintage" jewelry in a beautiful amber, with pearl and dark gray rhinestone accents.

Look 2:  Night

*Photos by Forever 21

Now, for look two, we have a chiffon dress with a draped neckline.  Again, the chiffon is reminiscent of a dancer's skirt, and navy is a very classic, elegant color.  Actually, one dance school I attended required navy leotards, come to think of it.  Anyway, I have it paired with black open weave (fishnet) tights with lace seams up the back.  Seamed tights are a ballet staple.  Black ballet slippers with large stone accents complete the outfit.  As for the jewelry, we start with a feathered and jeweled hair clip (Swan Lake, anyone?), then add an ornate bracelet of dark gray stones, coupled with black and gray bangles.  We finish it off with an elaborate black and clear rhinestone ring.

Photo by Britta Rivera

Obviously, these are just examples, but it shows how a little inspiration and a lot of digging can make up some interesting and fun ensembles.  This last picture was just for fun.  Isn't it gorgeous?!  The photographer is Britta Rivera, and I hope she doesn't mind me posting this.  It was on a flyer, after all.  Anyway, these were just too pretty not to share.

Now, it's magic bag o' samples time!!  If you're just joining Adorable Napalm, this is my penance for hording samples for, well, ever.  Every day, I pull one at random and test it out, then review it here.  This morning, with my sinuses going bonkers, I pulled out Juicy Couture's Viva La Juicy eau de parfum.  Yay?  $18-$87, Sephora.com.

According to Sephora:

Can't get enough couture? Well here's even more, for Juicy girls who want it all. Juicy Couture presents Viva La Juicy, an enticing scent of wild berries and mandarins, honeysuckle, gardenia, and jasmine. To round it out, amber, caramel, vanilla, sandalwood, and praline add just the right touch of sweetness. It's bottled in a bold gold decanter decorated with Juicy charms.

According to me:  I wants it, my precious!!!  It's fun, fresh, young, and smells like pralines.  Seriously, the first thing I noticed was the caramel, and while I can note some floral scent now (hours later), I can still detect the sweetness, and I'm in love with it.  This is what I would call a weekend perfume.  You know, you have your everyday scent, and you have your special occasion fragrance.  This is your fun, nothing's planned, but anything can happen perfume.  If you've been reading for a while, you know that I've tried several perfumes now, and have some favorites.  Well, just for fun, I decided to classify them.  Here you go.  Maybe it'll help you pick your own faves.

Juicy Couture Couture Couture (really?  Three Coutures?):  Everyday fragrance.  Sweet, but not saccharine,  and a little sassy.
Juicy Couture Viva La Juicy:  Weekend fragrance.  Sweeter and sassier, but with a little sex appeal with the honeysuckle and jasmine.
Givenchy Hot Couture (what is it with Couture?):  Special Occasion fragrance.  Very sweet, and the raspberry smells like Heaven.  I mean, I really think that's what Heaven will smell like.  It's gorgeous.
Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb:  Extreme Special Occasion fragrance.  Weddings (including your own), anniversaries, going anywhere with a dress code, that sort of thing.  Again, very sweet, but this time it's also very innocent.  It also contains ballerina freesia, which just sounds pretty. 

All of these are available at Sephora.com, and all have rollerball options that run in the $20 range.  As my samples run out, that's the route I'm going.