Freckle Face

Recently on a walk after school to a nearby gelateria, a freckle faced foe asked how I felt about my spotted skin. Taken aback, I thought for a second and paused. For years I had tried to mimic Lindsay Lohan's magical freckle disappearance, and when that failed, I had resorted to plan B. Turn my face into one massive tanned dot. After a summer of staring into the sun so intently that my lips donned a freckled do', I have learned to fully embrace the freckle. Who wouldn't want to match their polka dotted blouse and say their skin is covered in kisses from the sun? Not me. Frecklesforever.

Sandbox Sunday

Today has been the most glorious day that ever was. Don't believe me? See above. Perhaps it's because Call Me Maybe has been on repeat since last night, or because I sat on the Campo in the middle of a chocolate fair for three hours this morning, or maybe just because i'm eating grapes that taste like peaches and tangerines at the same time. In any case, Italy is the most wonderful place in the world and it's very tragic that I only have two weeks left. Salute to sunshine, chocolate truffles and love affairs with an entire country!

GIRL CRUSH: Elisa Nalin

Elisa Nalin, former freelance stylist for Dazed & Confused, Intersection and i-D, is now the Paris Fashion Editor for Crash Magazine. Growing up in Verona, Italy, Nalin moved to Milan to attend the Istituto Europeo del Design and then to Paris to peruse her career. Queen of bright colors, prints on prints and a hair do' quite possibly surpassing Twiggy's cool, Nalin is most certainly girl crush material. 

Balmain Fall 2012

As the former back room boy at Balmain, Oliver Rousteing has stepped out of the sidelines and delivered his second collection as head designer at Balmain. The collection was inspired by a Fabergé egg he saw when visiting Christie's auction of Elizabeth Taylor's jewelry and clothes during his first trip to New York. Combining boxy silhouettes, mini skirts and tailored dresses, the collection is both effortlessly cool and incredibly directional. With embroidery reminiscent of a grandmothers pillow,  collars hinting at a baroque cathedral and silhouettes flirting with 18th century mens fashion, Rousteing's Fall 2012 collection could not be more ideal.  

“You don’t want to look crazy. The object is to look as chic as you can, but your average person in the street would NEVER wear this.”

Ari Seth Cohen, the photographer behind Advanced Style, offers proof from the wise and silver-haired that personal style advances with age. If I can be half as chic as these New York women in my old age, I'll be pretty damn pleased.