Claudia Estrada used the galaxy as inspiration for her ClaudiaE Fall 2010 Collection. The bright yellow blown-up leopard design on these satin cigarette pants is almost unrecognizable as an animal print! It's reminiscent of burning coals in the lake of fire or film blotches. I love the new wave neon blue chevrons on the top as well.

.

Here the nuclear leopard print is featured on a flowy, Grecian minidress. Gorgeous!
.

I love this herringbone vest with vaguely floral snap buttons. The zig-zag paneled shiny denim pants wouldn't spend much time on the hanger, either.
.

Which look is your favorite?
You can find more information and photos at www.claudiae.com.

.

80%20 Heide - Brown

All you regular readers know how I like to toughen up girly dresses with boots. (It's the tomboy in me.) These conspicuous wedges--as opposed to 80%20's signature hidden wedges--are very reminiscent of work boots. I'm reminded of the hiking boots my older sister had in the 90's that I used to covet, except these have a stylish, feminine wedge to hold up the off-road laces. Just imagine these with a girly, floral or tartan summer dress. Yes! Now you see why I need these boots in my life. The contrasting blue suede at the top is really what knocks it out of the park for me. Genius!

.

80%20 Nory - Giraffe

Have you ever seen a pair of wedge creepers? You're looking at a pair! The wedge is hidden on the inside so you get the flattering extra boost with the look of flat, classic creepers. That's 80%20's specialty, and one of the reasons I go so bonkers for them. These creepers feature straps and buckles over a furry giraffe print made of calfhair. If I had these, I would be petting them all the time. I mean, I would have them in my lap while at the computer or watching television like a lap kitty. I'm half-serious.

.

80%20 Wren Rockabilly - Natural

See the Cuban heel there? That's not all the height you're getting with these. 80%20 heard you like height so these have a hidden wedge stacked on top of a Cuban heel! Mix in zippers and studs on a cowboy boot and you have the most amazing pair of rockabilly boots. The zippers zip up so you have options. Genius, or what? I'd love to see these with chambray or the denim-on-denim trend.

.

The 80%20 Fall 2010 collection should be available by the beginning of September. Follow 80%20 on Twitter or subscribe to their newsletter so you don't miss out!

.
Which pair is your favorite?

• Seneca Rising dress from REVOLVEclothing
• Beaded chevron necklace from F21 (I think)
• Cut-off leggings from eBay
• DIY thumbtack studded Cole Haan for Nike shoes

Does this dress look familiar? It's the same dress from a post I did for Revolve. I wore a tank top underneath for modesty's sake last time, but this time I just went for it. I don't think it's showing too much. I mean, you can totally see my bra if you look closely, but it just looks like part of the dress. Maybe I should have listed it. Ha. It's one of those cotton American Apparel bralettes. I love the subtle geometry in this outfit: the stripes of the dress, X on my foot, chevron necklace. Really I think the necklace is essential here, whereas it wouldn't have worked at all in the first outfit.

James is a genius and has stolen my heart. Check out his hilarious blog and you'll understand the perfectionism that goes behind his work designing BlackMilk leggings. We're kindred, as we're both leggings-obsessed. With this pair, he's touched upon another obsession of mine. I've never really had a favorite flower. For many years, whenever someone has asked what my favorite flower is, I've answered, "Blue ones." Any blue flower is my favorite. Blue roses are special for yet another reason. If you're a David Lynch fan, then you know what I'm talking about. If not, view this short clip.

Have you ever shopped at Threadsence? If not, you should check them out. They offer affordable indie designer pieces. I don't mean affordable in an out-of-touch, "These shoes are only $250," kind of way. I mean affordable like almost everything on the site is less than $100. That being said, I still like to play the virtual-shopping game over there. You know the game where you fill up your online shopping cart with all the stuff you like but stop just short of checking out? Yeah. You do that too, right? It's a good way to satiate the shopping bug when your budget is tapped. Maybe when I have some spare beans I'll come back and get something, but for now I'll stick to the game. Want to see what's in my cart?

• A. Crop Studded Faux Leather Jacket ($72) - Look, I know nothing is more played than moto jackets and studs, but I really don't care. This jacket is cute as hell. Drape it over a pink dress, black boots, and you're done.

• B. Stripe Strappy Tank Dress ($35) - This is very similar to the dress I wore on my birthday (seen here), but that doesn't stop me from wanting it. Yes, it's a striped dress, but this one is gray and the stripes are more narrow. Do I really need to justify an imaginary purchase?

• C. Cabbage Rose Tie Back Mesh Tank ($29) - This is a sheer floral tank with a cute tie in the back. If you like this top but think 90's florals are too trendy, don't worry. We're talking about flowers. Flowers have epitomized beauty since the the dawn of civilization. This tank is pretty, and it will always be pretty.

• D. Dreamtime Mini Dress by MINK PINK ($63) - This dress wants me to wear a bright color with it. I'm thinking either orange boots, neon green tights, or a cobalt blue purse. Just a splash like they talk about on interior design shows when picking out throw pillows.

• E. Layered Zip Tank ($28) - I wonder if the pieces come apart? I would probably end up wearing the gray top layer separately at some point.

• F. Mini Safety Pin Earrings ($7) - Adorably punk. I never change my earrings, but these are so cute--like a snarling little teacup doggie.

• G. Boxy Stripe Top ($35) - I would wear this dolman-sleeved shirt with denim short-shorts and some sandal/boot hybrids. Very summertime and breezy.

Which one of these do you think I should actually purchase?

Read on to learn more about Alice + Olivia and the giveaway.

.

About Alice + Olivia

From sexy dresses to dramatic Alice and Olivia jewelry, Alice and Olivia has you covered. 32-year-old Alice + Olivia founder and designer, Stacey Bendet, a New York native with a toddler daughter, is married to Eric Eisner, movie producer and son of Disney bigwig Michael Eisner. In 2002, Stacey and her former Penn classmate, Rebecca Matchett, founded Alice + Olivia, naming the line after the first names of their mothers. That same year, the pair showed Bendet's first designs to fashion-industry insiders and celebrities at the Russian Tea Room. This collection introduced the label's signature low-rise, slim-fitting "Staceypants" in bright, funky patterns. A year later, Bendet split from Matchett, replacing her chief financial partner with Theory's founder, Andrew Rosen.

Alice + Oliva Clothing at Shopbop

Alice + Olivia showcased a balance between girly and edgy in the Spring 2010 collection; one look, for example, paired a silver sequined, mesh dress with a futuristic, metallic jacket, accessorizing the ensemble with black platform ankle boots. For spring, Shopbook has created an Alice + Olivia clothing lookbook comprised of 5 "urbane safari" looks worth checking out. I like to think of the collection as "disco safari."
Other Alice + Olivia highlights from Shopbop include the
Alice + Olivia sale items like the dainty Molly Mod Dress with Belt.

How to win a $100 Shopbop gift card:

Entering this giveaway is easy. (Plus, it gives you an excuse to window shop!)
Comment below telling me which Alice + Olivia item from Shopbop is your favorite and what you would wear with it, and with a little luck the $100 Shopbop gift card will be yours!

Here's my favorite: the Gabby Embellished Dress. I would wear it with black tights and booties, and a denim clutch. How cute would that be?!

This giveaway is open to everyone! The winner will be randomly selected.
Good luck!

Contest ends May 23, 2010, at 11:59 EST.

This is a very simple DIY. First I cut a plain white v-neck into a tank top (click here for my instructions on how to do that). One package of mixed safety pins and about 30-45 minutes later, we now have a snowflake-like mandala of safety pins embellishing this top. Had I thought about it, I might have dyed it peach. Now I'm afraid it's too delicate to withstand the dying process, but that's okay. It's still very pretty. I made a different pattern than the Moschino version and didn't use any beads. Really, this is less about Moschino and more about a punk classic, but it was definitely inspired.

Have you attached safety pins to anything or do you plan to?

• DIY safety pin embellished top
• Via Christa Chains necklace
• Silence & Noise vest
• Beaded bracelet from souvenir shop in Chloride, AZ
• Hudson skinny pants
• 80%20 Molly mesh shoes - Karmaloop

.

Other easy DIY posts you might like:

What I wouldn't give for a Nudie jacket. It would be a dream to have a custom-made one, like Gram's. Gram chose to place marijuana leaves and opium poppies on the front, pills and acid sugar cubes on the sleeves, naked busty women on the lapels, and (my favorite detail) the prison tattoo-esque cross featured on the back. The flames of hell creep up his legs. Everything is embroidered and surrounded by sequins. Glorious! Sadly, this suit (rather intentionally) foreshadows his young death by overdose. But back to the glory... I think if I were to have a Nudie jacket made, it would feature blue roses on the front, purple seven-pointed stars with lots of glitz on the sleeves, two large safety pins on the lapels (embroidered and sequined of course, not real safety pins), and a great big delicious strawberry pink ice cream cone on the back. Glamour!

What would your dream custom-made Nudie suit look like?

While we dream on, let's look through these eBay listings for a cool sequin blazer:

This dress stands out as my favorite:

Photo by Thomas Kletecka. Enthusiastic editing by me.

First of all, the abstract cubism print: I go a little crazy over multicolor anything on black backgrounds, but this is like Picasso meets The Transformers! Something about it makes me think of robots in motion. There's a masculinity there in the primary colors and sharp shapes. After scattering around over the print, the eye is next drawn up to the shoulder, where we have a piece of Althea's signature knitwork in the form of an asymmetric shrug. I suddenly wish all my dresses could have a one-shouldered shrug. Is it possible to make a detachable one? My mind is a little blown right now.

You can find more from this show on Althea's Facebook.