Vintage Valentine Dresses

All these vintage Valentine dresses are available at Alameda Vintage. Now go get yourself laid.

xo,

Sabrina London

Auction Day!

Grab your muskets and mascara war paint because IT'S AN AUCTION DAY.

Now get yourself over to Alameda Vintage and fight to the death!!!

xo,

Sabrina London

How to Wear a Maxi Skirt

Hold My Gold Vintage

You've probably spent your whole life avoiding them and with good reason. The infamous MAXI SKIRT can dredge up imagery of pilgrims, hippie communes, Utah or that unfortunate 2nd grade class photo (at least if you grew up in the '90s).

While your skepticism may be merited, the maxi skirt is the latest up-and-coming trend here in Hollyweird and I'm here to tell you, if executed properly, a maxi skirt can be downright hot.

HOW TO ROCK IT:

- The 2011 maxi skirt is all about two things: a high-waist and a flowing skirt.

- Opt for a maxi skirt with an elasticized waist so you can wear it on the smallest part of your waist (right above your belly button).

- Add a waist-cinching belt. This will break the massive print or color consuming your lower half, and add visual interest.

- The most popular color I've seen for this trend is black. It's chic. It's versatile. And everything goes with black. Neutrals are definitely the easiest to pull off (nude, charcoal, black). But if you're feeling more daring, try a tartan plaid or ditsy floral (like the one pictured above).

- Go for a gradual A-line. A slinky silhouette is key and you'll want a lightweight fabric that MOVES when you move. A stretch-poly-blend is actually preferable to the standard cotton variety.

- No tiers. No ruffles. No bright colors. No big prints. And while this may come as a surprise: no camisoles.

- What do you wear with your maxi? Our style reconnaissance points to cropped blouses and sweaters as the number one choice. A slouchy cropped sweater paired with a slinky black maxi is the Sinatra of panache. Look for a beautiful draped fit and dolman sleeves are a plus.

- When wearing a maxi skirt, what you put on your feet in almost as important as what you wear on top. If you're not afraid of heights, a pair of T-strap wooden platforms (like above) looks stunning. Try to avoid sandals and flats (with gladiator sandals being the exception).

- Don't forget the accessories. Feather earrings, bracelets, and a long strand necklace will go a long way in playing up your maxi looks' potential.

xo,

Sabrina London

Discontinued!

Today I found out my favorite lip balm - Neutrogena Lip Nutrition in "Berry Smooth" - was discontinued. When did Neutrogena pull the plug? I have no idea. But somewhere in heaven an angel with dry lips just discontinued its wings... with a blowtorch.

You know how magazine editors are always pontificating their esteemed "beauty secrets" ("tee hee")? Well, this was one of mine. I discovered this little gem many moons ago, when I was but a poor college student, wasting time in the drug store while my prescription for IHaveAnxiety was being filled. I came upon this $7 miniature tub of lip balm that caught my attention because wow, that's a lot of money for .18 ounce of anything. What does it DO? Or perhaps (more sinisterly): what does it want from us?

The lip balm tubs came in 3 flavors at the time: Cool Mint, Refreshing Mango, and Berry Smooth. I'm not one for making decisions so I bought all three, then picked up my happy pills and went on my merry way.

That evening, I experimented with "Berry Smooth" because it was pink and that agreed with me. I noticed the consistency was a bit waxy, and you had to scrape it with your fingernail, rather than dab your fingertips in it. Using my nail to apply lip balm seemed like a silly way to go about things, but I was excited to try those interesting little jojoba beads in the mix.

The balm instantly tingled and I worked the waxy finish into my lips, rubbing in circles. The beads did not break very easily - I ended up eating my fair share of them, but sometimes beauty is mysterious.

What was I expecting from this new venture into Moisture Town? Soft, hydrated lips that wouldn't crack or dry. But what magical secret had I unwittingly discovered?

This. made. my. lips. HUGE.

Not in the hypoallergenic, go to the emergency room HUGE. But in the super moisture + exfoliating beads = bigger, softer, puffier lips HUGE. This was not even advertised! And remarkably, the effect of this lasted long after I'd kissed it off on the round end of a silver chicken flask (oh college!). It lasted for days. I'd wake up the next morning with an Angelina pout, much to my awe and delight. The unintended consequence of using this once a day is that I looked way poutier for the next 4 years than I had any right portraying myself to be.

Eh!

I later replaced this with Too Faced Lip Injection Serum, a $30 investment for larger-than-life lips that were downright obscene. In college, buying this was a luxury when you spent less money on groceries. I remember loving how quickly it worked and it gave your lips a hydro glossy finish (as opposed to my secret weapon's waxy finish). The biggest downsides? Besides costing a day's wage at the radio station I worked at, it sometimes crept outside your lip line and turned your whole mouth bright red. Any skin it touched burned ruddy and inflamed. Also, the bulging effect didn't last much longer than a few hours.

After college, I stopped treating my lips with strange serums and topical gels. As long as they were hydrated, the Angelina look didn't matter so much any more. Only recently have I kind of missed the reliable comfort and ease of my Neutrogena Lip Nutrition balm and after a late night run to Rite-Aid, I realized it was no more.

Of course, never fear: that's why eBay is here. Just purchased a lot of *20* in 3 flavors. Win win win win (Butler).

Yours,

Sabrina London

Blacker Than My Heart

After hours of researching how to go blonde, I came to the sad realization it wasn't going to happen. Besides being time-consuming and expensive, the universal consensus on black-to-blonde transitions is that it completely, irreversibly buttfucks your hair. The texture can become straw-like or even worse, like stretched out gum. As much as I'd love to wake up to platinum hair on my pillow, I'd rather it still be attached to my head.

So I decided on the next best thing and ventured out to find The Blackest Black hair dye. Upon reading countless message threads, there was a debate between Feria "Black Leather" or "Blue Black." I have tried Feria before and found that it fades very quickly. I liked the deep conditioner included; it left my hair very soft. But I seem to recall 2 weeks of purple bath water before my hair regressed into a dull black.

One recommendation pointed to Bigen Oriental Black, a powder-based dye that used no hydrogen peroxide or ammonia. This piqued my interest. I loved the weird outdated packaging and that evidently this Japanese brand had been around for over a hundred years. Plus, it's endorsed by a geisha!

I walked to the nearest beauty supply store and bought a box for $6. After covering my kitchen floor in towels and chip-clipping a towel around my neck, I started with my roots. I was surprised to realize the dye had a really pleasant smell. The lack of chemicals made a huge impact on the aroma, which was kind of like flowers.

The mixture from one box was pretty spare and I had to double-up the water measurement to cover my whole head (I strongly recommend 2 boxes if you have anything longer than a pixie cut). It was a little runny, but not debilitatingly so and it got the job done.

After rinsing it out, I soaked my hair in conditioner for 10 minutes to ensure everything was kosher. The result? A beautiful, rich Joan fucking Jett black. I'm very pleased. It came out VERY dark, which is exactly what I wanted. This is the first day so I'm curious to see how it holds up after a few washes. I may buy another box for a touch-up since I was really stretching that single bottle.

As I'm writing this, it's suddenly occurring to me I should have taken before and after shots. What the fuck is the point of a hair dye blog without photos?! Sorry chickadees. I'll take some early next week.

*UPDATE*

Voila! The new color. Blacker than a night at the Apollo.

- Sabrina London

A Resounding Yes!

Times Up Shop

Yes! This vintage '50s LBD takes the cake, the crumbs, and the ceramic plate. My favorite Denmark vintage shop has inspired me again with this sheer lace party dress worn over a leotard. THAT is innovation. When fashion is fearless, you know you're doing it right. Hats off to Times Up.

- Sabrina London

Out Sick

So it looks like I have chronic bronchitis. Ack! I'm taking the week off to recoop, which so far has involved lots of turkey sandwiches, Teen Mom 2, and celebrity gossip. Now that I'm all up to speed on Ricky Gervais' scandalous Golden Globes' speech, the healing can begin.

In other news:

* Finally set up the Crosby record player my husband got me for Giftmas. Just as I imagined, vinyl is a revelation. We've listened to the Smiths, the Beatles and the 5678's and Frank Sinatra so far. Sean wants to buy more 45's so we can get the world's raddest jukebox.

* Had my identity thieved! I feel like one of those people in the commercials. Some dick hole in the Netherlands tried to charge a bunch of jewelry to my card. Nice try, dickshit. That card was already maxed out.

* I'm considering becoming a vintage fashion curator on Myspace. It would be an extra $500 a month for what essentially breaks down to 10 vintage related tweets a day. Not a bad cash influx and could help fund heartbreakers like this:

American Archive

* I lost 9 pounds, presumably from coughing as cardio.

-Sabrina London