We've Moved!

.hoot. looks and feels so much better over at http://hootvintage.tumblr.com and because of that, posting will be much more frequent. Please adjust your readers and feed subscriptions!

.hoot.'s blogspot will stay intact only for old posts, but apologies for the layout and design disaster that happened.

Earth Day

Happy Earth Day! I fully embrace the idea of upcycling - taking existing materials generally deemed as worthless and giving them new life. I love the movement that is in full swing right now that seeks to reimagine things in a new context. So I thought I would celebrate Earth Day by showing some of my favorite recent appreciations.

First, a fantastic window dressing that Anthropologie near Rockefeller Center had displayed a few months ago. Back in February spring seemed far, far away but thankfully it has arrived here in New York. These great fixtures are made from colorful bits of plastic and arranged to appear like a flowering plant.

They remind me of the junk chandeliers I saw all over Europe last summer. Stuart Haygarth created the most well-known of these types with his Tide piece back in 2004, which was created from material that showed up on the beach near his home in England. He also made a chandelier made completely of eyeglasses.
These are great DIY projects that can make use of junk around the house or pretty much any item you can get your hands on. I love this one that was shown at the Stockholm Design fair a few years back.

The display at Anthropogie also featured a chair made out of an old radiator and trees with roots made of large plastic bottles filled with soil.

The former chairman of the Dutch Architects Union, Wassenaar Kees van der Hoeven, is creating a living space out of a shipping container with a flower pot facade. I saw this flower pot thing done in a few magazines a while back, but I think it is such a great design element.


It was featured on Superuse, a mecca for all things upcycled. The site inspires so many amazing projects I don't even know where to start.

So go... be inspired!

Animals on the Runway

Paris sent out a few more furry friends to add to the pack.

Fall 2010: Chanel, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, Topshop Unique

Add those to a few flying friends and we have a whole zoo!

Spring 2010: Jean-Charles de Castelbajac. Fall 2010 (middle): Ann Demeulemeester

Now play nice. They can bite.

...off to find my antlers.

London Calling

London is my favorite place on earth. And I've been a lot of places. It makes sense it is usually my favorite fashion week. I love the funky, colorful looks the Brits pump out and show in totally entertaining and creative ways. I realize that according to most in the fashion world London is not generally the most respected, but I always dig their vibe.

Here are some of my favorites from Paul Smith. I love his proportions and eye-popping color and accents. Plus who doesn't love wearing a 70's-style knit blanket?

Twenty8Twelve's collection featured a brilliant use of velour and velvet. I am pleased with these fabrics' return to fashion limelight. I also appreciate the youthfulness of these looks in a season where changing silhouettes seem to be adding 15 years. They do the maxi length dress well with great layers.

But I think my favorite out of London so far is Vivienne Westwood's Red Label. I am absolutely in love with her wacky print mixing.

Fall 2010 Loves: Milly, Jeremy Scott and Topshop

Looking at this season's collections, I am not finding a ton that I am absolutely in love with as compared to this last spring/summer. There seems to be a very dark, gothy vamp look that features tons of oddly draped fabric, as well as silhouettes that are stumpifying and with lengths not made for anyone less than six foot tall. There is also a lot of sheer circa mid-nineties. Nothing seems as crazy or whimsical (and wearable!) as I generally prefer.

Of course I am still browsing the collections and do find exceptions. The first being Jeremy Scott. This man is known for crazy and I love how he infuses elements of pop culture into his designs. Everything looks like a costume, yet oddly wearable (in specific circumstances of course) and I love costumes. I also love bedazzle.

Milly by Michelle Smith is another collection I am totally giddy about. Whereas most of the collections were very dark or muted colors, Milly spiced it up with eye-popping accents and fantastic styling through hosiery, hats and gloves. I can pretty much hear Chuck Bass whispering sweet nothings in my ear in these clothes.












Last but certainly not least is Topshop Unique's collection, which was sent down the runway today at London Fashion Week. Fulfilling my secret desires to have a barnyard theme party, Topshop created some unbelievable looks that could outfit my whole guestlist. Hooves anyone?












photos by Imaxtree via NYmag

Where My Girls At?

Most of my fashion week photos are dudes, mainly because I feel like I generally focus on women's style. But every once and a while I found some ladies I thought were unique.











This last girl might be a fashion disaster, but I liked the hat.

Man Bags and Mandazzling

All fashion week long it seemed that the men were dressed better than the women. That could just be because I saw more men around the menswear shows and all. However, the magic of men's clothing is clearly in the accessorizing. Here are some that dazzled me with either their brightness or love of a great bag.











The zipper detail on this jacket is sorta amazing