stressed

Life's been so terribly hectic for me lately, I'm starting to think I don't handle change well with trying to finalize everything with grad school applications, apartment hunting, apartment moving, midterms coming up, GMAT prep- it's all getting to be too much, all at the same time- I'm freaking out!

I need to breathe, do yoga, meditate, and probably stop drinking so much coffee- it is making it worse. How do you all deal with overwhelming times in your life?

But since this blog is mostly about fashion and not about my need for much needed therapy, below is an outfit I am thrilled came together fairly well. This crown braid has been a constant weekend hair-do (when I actually have time to do it) since I realized I might/want to chop my hair off in the next few weeks, I really like the feel of short hair, it's pretty liberating. And these Ray Bans are my new favorite sunnies- I have wanted these aviator's since forever ago. I finally got them with a discount code on Revolve Clothing. Gotta love discount codes!

{F21 coat and necklace, Target tank, layered kimono top purchased at Marshall's, Blank Denim jeans, Steve Madden wedges, Ray-Ban aviator's, bracelets vintage and H&M}

Charity Fashion Show

First off I want to say a huge thank you to all the wonderful comments you lovely people left on the last blog! A common yet rarely brought up topic with an interesting take from all your different views, really puts things in perspective with fashion, how you wear it for yourself, or for others-and quite the perspective those crazy pants!

A few weekends ago I was invited to attend a fashion show in San Francisco, but not just any show- the largest show in the Bay Area. A two hour show featuring local and world renowned designers from Tracy Reese, Naeem Khan to Antik Batik, all for a charitable cause- providing prom dresses for underpriveledged girls! If you follow me on twitter, you probably noticed a tweet regarding front seats at this show a few weekends ago-I just happened to ask the bf to tweet something festive, since my hands were full- taking pictures and jotting notes. And the task was completed with a "at a fashion show in SF"....what, that's it? Like the saying goes, if you want something done right, you got to do it yourself; I mean come on- not even an exclamation point! Sheesh--so pardon for the meh tweet, you're guaranteed to get lots more excitement from now on.

Anyways, there I was sitting front row at the Charity Fashion show, surrounded by fierce fashions, a wall of press, some pretty recognized bloggers, and all the Winter Kate I could handle- it was insane. Here is what I wore to the Fort Mason show and some shots from the evening! Enjoy...

{Honey Doll jacket, F21 lace dress, Steve Madden boots, Marc by Marc Jacobs mag clutch}

{photo courtesy from the hotness of street number eight- yup thats her in the fur coat, second photo}

Dont forget about my giveaway...

follow me on twitter, @alergic2vanilla, or facebook

man repeller?

Have you ever bought something that you completely loved on the rack, just to take it home and realize in shock it's not really as amazing as you thought it was? Case in point- my tribal 'hammer pants'. I bought them last summer on the sale rack at F21 (I should of known then, right?) when the jodhpur/ harem pants trend was still very much in full effect. So I kind of thought I scored, I mean 10 bucks for these unique, one of kind printed pants, it was my 'allergic to vanilla' dream come true! Alas when I tried them on in the dressing room they fit like a baggy glove, yet I felt like I belonged to a part of elite global gals akin to Giselle Bündchen and her posse. I imagined myself traipsing around town in five inch heels running from the Prada to the Chanel show- ok, maybe these pants were getting the better of me. I needed them!

So last weekend when I busted them out- nearly over half a year from when I bought them- they still had that glam appeal to me, I paired these wild pants with an elegant winter white sweater, sky scraper wedges and classic Chanel broach to balance out the crazy. It's strange to describe, but I felt in that moment, in that outfit I belonged in the 70's. I mentioned this to my bf, and he said more like the 90's- Hammer time 90's. All day I must have walked around like the sidewalk was my runway- I was in love with this interesting outfit I concocted.

At the end of the day, I noticed something wrong with my bf. He eventually fessed up- he hated the look, he thought it to be unflattering and completely wild- in a bad way. Looking back at the film, he's right- what was I thinking? I'm such a man repeller! Thinking back, I noticed lots of people looking at me- practically every person who walked by. I'm pretty sure they weren't wondering where they could get a pair of pants just like mine. Either way I wore what I loved at the time- and felt fabulous! But these pants are definitely not making a repeat appearance on this show! What do you guys think, (be honest now) would you be one of those people starring in horror? Hot or not friends?

{thrifted Land's End sweater, F21: pants & sunnies, Steve Madden wedges, vintage LV crossbody, Chanel broach, World Market cuff}

Dont forget to enter my fragrance giveaway, if your not into that sort of stuff, stay tuned for another one coming up shortly!

Hear more of my rantings on @alergic2vanilla- twitter feed.

And ravings on AllergictoVanilla facebook page.

bisou, Car

DKNY & Prescriptives Fragrance Giveaways because your cool- and no it's not an April Fool's Joke!

{my current fragrance obsessions: Dolce & Gabbana Rose the One, GUCCI Guilty, YSL Parisienne}

Springtime reminds me of billowy flower print dresses, and gladiator sandals, natural hair textures and subdued pastel colors. It smells like gardenia's, and freshly cut grass. Everything about this time of year is appealing. I want to share my love of spring's fresh, light, crisp fragrances and host a few fragrance giveaways!

1. DKNY Be Delicious- A juicy fragrance that combines the scent of apple with a sophisticated blend of exotic flowers and wood. This is my go to when I need a light pick me up, it goes from lunch date to happy hour in no time. The boys love, the girls love it, it's a crowd pleaser for sure.

{bite me!}

2. Calyx by Prescriptives: another fruity but sweeter scent, it has notes of grapefruit and mandarin with a tropical blend of passion fruit, mango, papaya and guava- has a much sweeter side, almost vanilla-like. Undertones of sandalwood balance out the florals and leave a wildly sensual scent lingering.

{major mani needed! aqua nail varnish by Charlotte Russe}

Two lucky individuals with win these yummy scents! Here are the rules:

*update: if you don't have twitter or fb, you can just follow on GFC ....

1. Must follow Allergic to Vanilla's Facebook here.

2. Follow Allergic to Vanilla on twitter, @alergic2vanilla. I'm pretty new to this- come on I need your support :)

3. Tell me what you'd like to see more of on my blog...new outfit styles, makeup routine, DIY's, etc

4. Contest will be live for the next two weeks, so Friday April 15th at midnight PDT is your last opportunity  to enter.

5. Leave your email in the comment

6. Leave different comments for each of the six ways to enter

Extra giveaway entry for...

1. Following on Google Friend Connect

2. Blogging/ or facebooking about it on your blog/fb page (leave the link so I can find you!)

3. Tweeting about it

4. Being cool (ok so this is only April Fools part about this contest!)

Two extra giveaway entries for:

1. Following on GFC and Bloglovin'

Good Luck lovers, and hope this little token of my deepest appreciation for all your support jumpstarts you to fab weekend!