Teeny Manolo

Ahhh, that time is coming, if not already here. Yes, the time to ponder what the heck you are going to buy your kids for their back to school wardrobes.

So for the next few weeks, I’m introducing a new feature where I focus on trendy back to school clothes, done two ways. Er, well, sometimes even three if I can swing it. And today, I can indeed swing three versions of the same concept in three different price ranges. Let’s get to it!

80’s influences are back, baby! And that means, of all things, argyle! Doesn’t it just take you back?

Lilly Pulitzer Kids Girl’s Darcie Cardigan Soft cotton cardigan comes with front pocket detail, rib trim, and contrast elbow patches. Tres cute at $68.00.

GapKids girl’s Argyle cardigan A little sparkle goes a long way with this cotton sweater, perfect for layering, $34.50.

Old Navy girl’s patterned polo Granted, it isn’t a sweater, but at $12.00, you will have plenty of money left over to buy some turtlenecks to stick under it.

Say hello to Tavi, a 12-year-old fashion blogger who is the very embodiment of superfantastic. While your common-or-garden tween angst appears to have put a temporary crimp in the blogging style, we have hope that she’ll again take to her keyboard and, with time, perhaps realize that no, Katie Holmes should not have worn black socks with those gladiator sandal heels.

Until such time as she makes a triumphant return to the blogosphere (ETA 36 hours) we can trawl the archives, enjoying such gems as: My New Best Friends

Normally I would say I want to kidnap them, but since we’re possibly the same age I shall instead befriend them. We’ll make secret clubs and eat soup we made out of tree bark and run around with mops on our heads and eat bugs. You’re extremely jealous you’re no longer 12 years old, aren’t you?

Damn straight.

Whoo-hoo! I’m excited!

Why are you so excited, Glinda, you ask? You are dying to know, I can feel it.

I’m excited because we are having a beauty giveaway here on Teeny Manolo!

Stila is one of my very favorite brands, and for the next few weeks, we will be giving away Stila’s fantastic Lip Glaze Sticks, one winner each week. These come in the same flavors as the Lip Glazes, but are in pencil form and have lots of shimmer. Perfect for summer! And who doesn’t like free stuff?

So what do you have to do to win?

1) If you have a blog, simply link to us somewhere on your blog. Leave your link in our comment section so that we can all see it, as well as promote your blog.

2) If you don’t have a blog, well, you will have to write something really nice about us and how much you love and adore us.

Winner will be chosen by random number generator, and unfortunately, this contest is limited to people in the United States and Canada. This week’s contest will close at 12AM Pacific, July 4, 2008.

Obey Uncle Karl! Obey or be assimilated!

It says:

It’s yellow, it’s ugly, it doesn’t go with anything, but it can save your life.

Yes, Karl Lagerfeld steps out for public safety. Unbelievable! I thought the Dark Prince of fashion was too busy cackling over the souls of the damned to give one about safety. But then, he actually does look pretty snazzy in it; must be the pussycat bow (note to self; try pussycat bow with flotation vest, MAKE it work!).

Can I just say that I love Wonderboy? No, not the Boy Wonder, but the clothing line Wonderboy. If I could take Wonderboy home and make them some nice homemade chicken soup, I would do it.

I have stated before that as a mother to a boy, I am sick of the same old same old. Same old stripes. Same old checks. Same old graphics of trucks and bugs and various amphibians. I want something different, something with personality.

Well, Wonderboy certainly delivers.

Sea Scroll

I’m like Homer Simpson eyeing a donut on this one. Let the drool commence…

Santorini

Me likey. Me likey lots.

Pool Shark

Love it!

Now, if I could just get them to lower their prices, all would be perfect!

Do I know my readership or what? Yes, you may now thank me for finding you The Most Perfect arts and crafts project to share with your children. Not only will they have fun printing this out and putting it together, but there is nothing a kid likes better than to see Mommy proudly wearing the result of his/her handiwork; that is something Mommies find much easier to bear when the result is not a macaroni necklace but rather:

An authentic Hermes Kelly bag.

The Birkin is so Twentieth Century, really.

Pick your design or use coloured paper (use handmade Japanese washi paper if you want to get really fancy), print out the pattern and cut and glue to your heart’s content. These babies are beautiful (I like the cherry blossom one, if I can’t have a plain black calf Kelly straight from the workshop). Kellys have always been superior to the relatively sloppy, vulgar Birkin in my arrogant and not-uninformed opinion, but it is a matter of personal taste: It’s To Catch a Thief versus Je T’Aime; Moi, Non Plus.

From Hermes via Counterfeit Chic.

And really, I can use that as my title because nobody really knows what the heck hollaback really means, so why not apply the term to shoes?

I was pleasantly suprised when I looked into the Gwen Stefani-designed clothing line Harajuku Lovers.  It was cute and age appropriate.  Not bad for a celebrity with no real prior designing experience.  When I heard she was also coming out with a line of shoes, I was excited.  I thought they were going to be good.

Ah, expectations. Why must you always dashed?

Bo-ring.

Double bo-ring.

And even worse,  bo-ring, ugly, and overpriced at the same time. I’m sure it takes some sort of talent to design something so multifaceted, right? Nobody said they had to be good facets or anything.

If your kid wants skate shoes, do yourself a favor and go buy some Vans instead. They’re better looking and a heck of a lot cheaper. 

This isn’t on my traditional Mommyblogging beat, but it has to be said.

Yves Saint Laurent, one of the greatest forces in fashion history, has died at the age of 71. His career was a testament not only to beauty and to women but also to his tenacity and struggle with disabilities both physical and mental. That he created so much of enduring worth is an eloquent legacy, thanks to his sometimes-victories over those challenges, and culture itself has been enriched by his body of work.

Here is some of it: His second collection, from 1962.

I was never a Saint Laurent woman, nor ever will be, but the immaculate, sexy, unattainable, vaguely bondage-inclined goddess is an icon of the Twentieth Century and such women as Catherine Deneuve, Loulou de la Falaise, Gisele Bundchen, and Linda Evangelista owe a large part of their fame to their ability to inspire and collaborate with YSL.

The YSL Manifesto. Let his own work stand as his eulogy: