Prototype FASHION FREAKOUT

It's time for the 3rd annual Fashion Freakout! On Feb.5th, three of Austin's best vintage stores, Prototype Vintage Design, New Bohemia, and Buffalo Exchange collaborate to bring you a rockin fashion show at the Mohawk.

Come check out how these vintage stores mix vintage and modern to create a stylish look that is an Austin favorite. There will be dj's, drink specials, a photo booth, and live music by The Carrots.

This should be an awesome show with lots of local austin style!

This is an all ages show. Adults pay $10 and minors pay $12.
Doors at 7pm
Show starts at 9pm
Friday Feb.5

To buy tickets in advance click here.


keep austin stylish

Le Garage Sale Winter 2010

The local boutiques are having their winter sales right now to get rid of all their fall and winter clothes to make way for new spring stuff! But what happens to the clothes that don't get sold at these sales?

Le Garage Sale is the 2 day shopping event in which our local boutiques come together in one place, the Palmer Events Center, to bring you clothes and accessories at major clearance sale prices.

This event is going on Saturday January 30 noon - 5pm
and Sunday January 31 noon - 5pm

Admission is $10 a day per person or you can get a 2 day pass for $15.

If you are going to go, I suggest you go the first day and go early! But going on the second day is also cool because sometimes the stores mark down their prices even more the second day.

Here is the list of stores who participate in Le Garage Sale:

• Abito
• Adelante
• Angelica Debiase
• Betty Cupcake
• Buydefinition
• By George
• c.jane
• Cupidz Clozet
• Designer Clearance House
• Dress Shop
• Elle Boutique
• Estilo
• fab'rik
• gallery D
• Girl Next Door
• Herff Christiansen
• Launch
• Lillian Bloom Designs
• Marmara
• Marnie Bugs
• Minx
• Moxie
• Paige King Jewelry
• perriberri
• Ruby Pearl
• Shiki
• Sikara & Co.
• Soigne Boutique
• SoLa
• Solid Gold
• Sublime Styles
• Tasty Jewelry
• Taylor Moseley Jewelry
• The Hip Chick
• The Physical Fit
• The PJ Shop
• Touch of Sass
• Tylers
• West Coast Salvage
• y and i Boutique

keep austin stylish

By George Sale

Just wanted to let y'all know that By George is having a sale right now that lasts til January 29th, so shop while you can!

Selected shoes, clothing, and accessories are up to 75% off.

by george is located at 524 north lamar AND 1400 south congress

Beauty From the Inside Out

"What I wear is a reflection of who I am on the inside." This is a statement that many fashion oriented folks have said at one time or another. How we look on the outside projects a certain image to others, whether we like it or not. It is up to us to decide what image we want to portray. This is one of the most interesting things about fashion and style. Personal style develops over time and is always changing depending on our lifestyle choices, our moods, etc. No matter what is going on in our lives, we always have a choice with fashion. Even with the rough economy and little to spend on clothes, we can shop at a thrift store and put together an outfit that represents who we are.

What message do you want to say to people with your fashion choices?

During times of tragedy or struggle in our society, this question usually turns up a different answer that is not so self oriented. Many fashionable efforts are being made to help with the situation in Haiti. Lady Gaga has designed a special t-shirt in which 100% of the profits will go towards Haitian relief, and the Golden Globe dresses worn by the stars are being auctioned off to also help Haiti.

While it's great that celebrity powerhouses like Lady Gaga can fund these types of efforts, it's probably a lot more difficult (especially in this economy) for local businesses to be generous. This is why I was pleasantly surprised to hear that local accessories line, Shimmer and Bliss, will be donating 10% of their profits from 2010 to relief for Haiti. Shimmer and Bliss is "an accessories line designed to inspire beauty from the inside out." It's important that we not forget it is what's on the inside that matters. Because without a beautiful core to represent, then what's the point of fashion?

You can find Shimmer and Bliss's versatile and eco-chic scarves at Beyond Tradition in the 2nd st. district or you can shop Shimmer and Bliss's online store.


keep the world beautiful and
keep austin stylish

Fun Fashion Find: Mustache Bracelet

Mustache vinyl record bracelet found at Parts and Labour on South Congress.

Fun Fashion Find: I'm With COCO t-shirts

Click here to get your I'm With COCO t-shirt.

SoLa's Annual Sale

SoLa's annual clearance sale is here. This sale is huge. Clothing, shoes, and purses are 50% off! Toms shoes are 20% off.

The sale starts today January 15th and lasts til Monday January 25th.

And congratulations to SoLa for being voted Austin's Best Women's Clothing Shop on austin360.com


keep enjoying those local sales and
keep austin stylish

Soigne End of Season Sale

I don't know if you have noticed, but tons of stores are having their end of the season sales right now. Everyone wants to clear out their winter merchandise to make room for the new spring/summer stuff!

Soigne Boutique is starting their big sale tomorrow, Thursday January 14th and it will last til Thursday January 28th.

All shoes are 50% off. All clothes are 30-50% off. And all clearance is 70% off!

Enjoy the local sales!


keep austin stylish

Monica, Ree-lly?

I wish I only ever had nice things to say about the local clothing stores in Austin. And I usually have nothing but love for the local designers. However, occasionally a bad review must be written. Monica Ree is the most recent boutique to open up in our casually chic town. This dress boutique has only been open for about month and I went to check it out today in the Triangle at 47th and North Lamar. If you want to go to this store I suggest you do it soon because truthfully I don't think it will last long. And make sure you don't go on Sunday because they are closed (ugh).

The cool thing about Monica Ree is that all the dresses in the store are designed by Monica Ree herself. It's impressive that a local designer was able to open up her own store with almost everything inside being her own designs. The unfortunate thing is that this UT graduate designer doesn't have much taste. The store itself lacked individuality and the clothes inside lacked style. I really couldn't find a single dress that I would want to wear. The fabric choices were odd. Several pieces were made with fabric that appeared cheap. Some of the dresses look like things you might find at Goodwill that are not old enough to be vintage and cool, but just old enough to be out of style and tacky.

On top of the bad clothes, I have to say that Monica Ree herself does not have the drive and personality to make it in the fashion business. Having worked in customer service myself, I know that when a customer comes in with lots of questions and a talkative personality, you should embrace it and can almost always make a sale out of it. I came in genuinely wanting to know more about the clothes and the store, but the girl who was working there did not want anything to do with me. She kept turning the music up louder after i would ask a question. She clearly didn't want to talk to me. I finally found out that she was in fact Monica Ree herself.

I guess Monica Ree feels that her dresses and her store speak loud enough for themselves that she doesn't need to discuss them. Too bad she is wrong.

Austin Fashion Week 2010

The first details regarding this year's
Austin Fashion Week were announced earlier today.

The 2nd Annual Austin Fashion Week will take place
August 14-21.

Here's what will be going on:

Austin Fashion Week Kickoff Event: August 14 (location TBD)
Local designers, photographers, hair stylists, makeup artists, and models will be teamed up to present over the top looks.

Austin Fashion Week Events: August 15-20
Different retailers and salons will be hosting different events including trunk shows, fashion shows, and more.

Austin Fashion Awards: August 21 (location TBD)
Live music and runway shows while awards are presented.

Austin Fashion Awards After Party: August 21 (location TBD)
Party with the winners and nominees of the Austin Fashion Awards.


keep austin stylish will keep you updated on the Austin Fashion Awards as more details are announced...I'm excited!

Did Some Bitchin Stitchin at the Stitch Lab

Tonight was the first night of my sewing class at the Stitch Lab on South 1st Street. I didn't know what to expect from this class, but I can tell you that I am so glad that I signed up for this experience. I have had a sewing machine for a couple years now and have tried to sew several things. I have had some successes along with some failures, so, I thought it would be a good idea to start from scratch and get some formal training. I have already learned so much useful information just in my first class.

The Stitch Lab is an awesome little gem for the person who is crafty. I definitely suggest signing up to take one of their classes if you want to learn how to sew, knit, embroider, etc. They have a ton of different classes to take. Go here to check out what classes they have to offer. Also, the Stitch Lab is a great place to buy fun fabrics. Much like the Common Thread, they have a lot of really cute prints that you won't find at JoAnn's or Hancocks. You can go here to check out their fabrics.

Just think of all the stylish things you could create after taking a class at the Stitch Lab! Sewing is also a very handy skill to have if you like to thrift shop so that you aren't limited by the way things fit. After a few more classes I will be able to confidently make alterations to anything I want. "Sewing is power, independence, and creative freedom!"


Thank you Stitch Lab for keeping austin stylish!

Vintage Find for the Tribal Chic Trend

Vintage clothing plays a significant role in the fashion of Austin. Austinites take pride in being unique, and adding a vintage piece to an outfit definitely adds an individual flair to your look. But you can wear vintage while still staying on top of the trends.

I went to one of my favorite vintage stores today, Feathers Boutique on South Congress. Feathers has an ever changing really well edited collection, and it is particularly good if you are wanting top notch designer labels.

I have had my eye on this vintage Dries Van Noten top at Feathers for awhile. They marked down the price since the last time I tried it on, so I couldn't resist getting it this time around.

My Dries Van Noten top inspired me to check out their collection for summer 2010. Their new stuff has a similar tribal look that my vintage piece has.

I love the bold prints and the way they mix the prints together. These tribal patterns and the mixing of bright prints are going to be popular for this spring/summer. Here are more examples from different designers of this upcoming trend from the runways:



have fun shopping for the Spring!
more spring/summer trends posts coming soon.

keep austin stylish