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No Depends or dentures for this 72 year old grandfather. His outfits are so stylish, it puts me to shame! I hope to be this fashionable in my senior citizen years.

Trends & Tribulations's avatarTrends & Tribulations

The internet world is buzzing about Liu Xianping, a 72-year old grandpa who was helping his granddaughter unpack clothing for her online boutique Yuekou, and started to give tips on how to style the clothing.  His granddaughter shares, “He picked up one piece and tried to give some advice on how to mix and match. We thought it was fun so we started shooting.”

Liu himself has stated, “Why unacceptable (for someone like me to wear women’s clothes? Modelling for the store is helping my granddaughter and I have nothing to lose. We were very happy on the day of the shooting. I’m very old and all that I care about is to be happy.”

Seriously wishing I had a grandfather this awesome.

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Trick or Treat?

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Freaks come out at night, and especially on Halloween in the form of sexy [insert occupation here] costumes for the females.

If dressing up as a risqué superhero isn’t your cup of tea, but you still want to get into the spirit, there is hope for you. Take the typical black and orange ensemble: accessorize it with tiny skull details in the necklace and knuckle ring clutch. Finish it off with a pair of glitzy skull pumps which are definitely a treat, and also oh-so appropriate for Día de los Muertos. It’s such a stylish outfit, no one will ever know that you’re secretly dressed for the ghostly occasion.

Dressing for Halloween is not at all scary. Trick or Treat!

Black peplum top / Orange pants / Skull pumps / Green clutch / Skull necklace

Roy G. Biv says: Hello, Uniqlo

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Uniq – what? Meet the new guy in town, Uniqlo, who just moved into the old DSW location on Powell Street in downtown San Francisco. In case you’ve been living under a rock, their grand opening on October 5th caused a shopping frenzy like no other: a side street was closed off to corral eager shoppers all day, security guards acted like bouncers at a night club, and the long lines lasted well after the grand opening weekend had passed.

Unlike their trendier neighbor H&M across the street, Uniqlo is a Japanese retailer who is all about delivering casual, comfy, and quality basics to their consumers, Roy G. Biv style. Think of them like the Gap, only they aren’t trying so hard to be trendy. With an endless supply of the colors of the rainbow throughout the store, I was sure I would find my pot of gold somewhere.

I finally had the chance to check them out two weeks after they opened and I was utterly surprised that there was no line. I headed straight for the coveted straight skinny colored jeans on promo for $9.90 a pair – but to my dismay, it was slim pickings for a slim pair. I moped around the store and almost settled on a pair of jeggings when I spied a pot of gold in the form of a tiny bin marked “clearance.” There were only a few items in there, mostly stained or damaged in some way, but that is where I found my two pairs of skinny colored denim in my size. They were “damaged” because the alteration must’ve been too short for whoever it was originally meant for, but they were my perfect inseam. Did I mention they hem your pants in house for just $5?

I’ve come to the conclusion that this is an excellent place to shop with your significant other. Not only do they have every color imaginable, but because of their very basic designs, it is easy to get a male and a female version of the same thing. Sadie Hawkins attendees, your prayers have been answered!

Although I’m not a fan of plain basic aka boring pieces, they do have their place in my closet. My favorites so far: ultra stretch color jeans, ultra light down jackets & vests, all of their coats, Heattech lounge wear, and cashmere sweaters.

I’ve always been a dark denim type of gal, but I’ve finally jumped on the colored jeans bandwagon. My final purchases: 2 pairs of colored jeans (red and green), 1 pair of regular jeans, and 1 navy blouse for a grand total of $30. It must be the luck of the Irish; just call me Victoria O’Brien from now on.

How do you like my wild prints paired with the colored pairs? Rawr!

1 LBD, 5 Days

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A $90 Chanel Suit? Unfortunately it was not found by yours truly, but instead by everyone’s favorite blue-haired lady.

In The Simpsons episode, “Scenes from the Class Struggle in Springfield,” Marge discovers the ultimate Maxxinista find while shopping at a fashion outlet: a Chanel suit for $90. She wears the suit around town while doing errands, and runs into an old acquaintance. Due to the status symbol of the suit, the acquaintance invites her to join a country club. In order to stay stylish and fit in, she alters the suit into different outfits for each event she attends with the elite crowd. In her madness to fit in, she accidentally ruins the suit during her final alteration.

This episode inspired me to conduct an experiment; I also wanted to take my Nautical by Nature a step further. No sewing machine was involved, only some clever accessorizing, belting, pinning, and tucking. One little black dress, worn on five consecutive days at work. That’s right, you heard me. Would I fool anyone? By Wednesday I had gotten some oatmeal on the front of my dress, but there was no turning back. I wasn’t about to block out an entire week’s worth of outfits just to try this again.

At the end of the week, no one had said anything to me. This could either mean that my co-workers:

1. Did not notice because they don’t pay attention (very likely)

2. Did not notice because I totally fooled them (I wouldn’t fool a true fashionista!)

3. Noticed, but did not say anything in order to be polite (in case I was suffering from financial hardships)

There was no way to get a definitive answer without asking people, so that’s just what I did. “Did you notice anything about my outfits this week?” Some of their responses:

“What should I have noticed?”

“No, was I supposed to? I always think you dress super cute and trendy.”

“Not off the top of my head.”

Meanwhile, there was only one person who knew I was planning to do this wear-it-everyday idea, yet she did not catch wind of the week I actually wore it. And the cherry on top of the cake: someone actually complimented my Friday look and gushed, “I love your skirt!”

I hereby declare Operation LBD a success! Next up: Operation Launder LBD

Nautical by Nature

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Whoever said “It’s not the size of the boat, but the motion in the ocean” obviously has never had motion sickness. Pass the Dramamine please!

It’s that time of year again. Handsome men in uniform flood the streets of San Francisco. Huge ships are docked at the piers. Blue Angels soar high above the city, performing death-defying stunts. That’s right, Fleet Week has arrived. And what better way to get in the spirit than by getting a little naughty? And by naughty, I mean nautical by nature, of course. At ease sailor, at ease!

I didn’t even realize I needed or wanted a long striped skirt in my life until I came across one at a cheapie store during my trip to Chicago last year. It called to me, “Ahoy  matey!” and I was instantly in love. Why stripes? The true original nautical look is a white top with navy stripes, which are also known as Breton stripes. Coco Chanel introduced it to the fashion world in 1917, and the rest is history. It seems that stripes are always a big thing each season, so when I picked up this skirt, I knew that I could wear it for many summers to come. All’s I gotta do now is find me a nice yacht and a captain to throw me a lifesaver. Ahoy!

Vintage Fashion Expo: WINNING

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You know the saying, “It’s like finding a needle in a haystack”? Well, I found that needle twice, no, make that three times. Except that the haystack was the Vintage Fashion Expo, and the needles were my three vintageous purchases. After an S&M-ish detour around Folsom Street Festival, I arrived at the Expo late Sunday afternoon. I suppose it was due to the moat of bondage clad half naked bodies outside, and the fact that it was late in the day, but the exhibition center was surprisingly quiet. This meant less crowds to fight through, less rushed shopping, and overall more bargaining power.

My first stop was at Aubergine Vintage. Clearly, they brought everything with them as well as the kitchen sink. Racks among racks of dresses, skirts, maxi dresses, slips, sweaters, hats, vintage Dooney & Bourke, boots, 70s polyester, 80s shoulder pads, and so much more. Everything was tagged with pricing, which eliminated the need for bargaining. Additionally, their prices were surprising very reasonable. I talked to Sarah, the store manager, and found out that they obtain most of their treasures from Texas and Europe. Oooh la la, French laundry direct from the the City of Lights? Cowboy boots straight from the “everything is bigger” state? I wanted to know, what was the most amazing thing that they have come across? “Recently there was a pristine vintage Burberry quintessential trench coat, and those go for $3,000. It was spectacular; amazing,” gushed Sarah. Wow was all I could say to that. I made off with two dresses in impeccable condition for $32 – the fact that they were petite sized was an added bonus!

Energized from my purchases from Aubergine, I proceeded next door to Donnaland, where they had a wide range of clothing and a killer jewelry collection to boot. It was the ultimate one stop shop for a complete outfit. Although her price points were higher, they were still far better than some of the other vendors there, and fast talking Donna was ready to wheel n’ deal. Donna had a personality as big as her vintage collection, and after speaking with her I know why: she’s been in the business since 1982. “I used to have the world’s largest wholesale deadstock company in St. Louis, Missouri for 24 years. I would travel all over the world to buy whole factories of clothing,” she explained. I hovered over the jewelry trays for a long time and contemplated a pair of gold toned 60’s clip on earrings until my eyes landed on a lovely sequined number hanging by the fur coats. Initially I wasn’t thinking of buying it until an impromptu entourage of gals threw compliments my way as I tried it on. “Ooooh it looks good on you girl!” said one. “I see it with a pair of ripped jeans!” added another. With my ego inflated, I was convinced I needed it in my closet, and I tried my hand at wheeling and dealing but didn’t move the needle much. The verdict: $37 for a fully lined sequined wool top, and not a sequin out of place. Thank you Donnaland, I shall return next year.

All I could do for the remaining 15 minutes left until the Expo’s close was to drink up the sights with my eyes (and camera) as vendors began packing their worldly goods away. It was a successful day: I spent $69 for three awesome pieces and still had money leftover to buy a ticket to the Vintage Couture Ball. I don’t quote Charlie Sheen much (or ever), but it seems fitting in this case: WINNING.