A few years back I discovered the magnifique concept boutique, Colette, located on the designer lined Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore in Paris.  Seeing the uniquely selected fashion items + the latest in music + the newest technology + a mix of food & drinks I was immediately & forever sold on the idea.  It is the ultimate & most perfect way to shop.  The merchandise & visuals are constantly evolving, changing, growing in these stores, making shopping forever exciting & quite the learning experience!  With boutiques, chain stores, dept. stores everywhere…. concept boutiques are the fabulous rarity.  And that being said, for consumers it is also about indulging in individualistic & quality pieces over fast fashion.  Perhaps the trend is moving from stores like H&M, Topshop & Zara to luxurious & unique stores like Colette, Merci, & Grand Opening.

Concept boutiques are being written up on both trendy blogs & fashion newspapers alike…From the ‘Phospene Fashion’ blog:

“It’s all about quality over quantity, no fuss simplicity and practicality.  Which is why I’m loving these  Marlow & Sons leather pouches and bags–there’s nothing frilly about them, just quality leather in pure functional form adorned with the simplest hardware. Marlow & Sons is based out of Brooklyn, NY and is actually a cafe / restaurant. There’s something very fascinating about food establishments serving up design and fashion. This brings to mind the (unfortunately, now-defunct) Achilles Project in Boston which delivered pasture raised veal carpaccio, potato gnocchi, champagne, Rag & Bone, MM6 and Surface to Air all under one roof. It was insane, perhaps too ambitious a concept, but the idea was beyond awesome. I want a Marlow & Sons bag and bring back the Achilles Project!”

From Women’s Wear Daily, June 26th 2010:

“THE GREAT EXCHANGE: Pop-ups are so last season. The next hip retail concept could be the swap shop. Paris boutique Colette and London’s KK Outlet, a retail space and gallery run by communications agency and publisher KesselsKramer, will showcase a selection of each other’s products from July 5 to 31. KesselsKramer is known for quirky books such as “The Worst Hotel in the World,” about the Hans Brinker Budget Hotel in Amsterdam.”

Colette, Paris:

K&K Outlet, London:

Here’s an amazing concentrated list of concept boutiques around the world….watch them grow!

‘Get Festive’ Collage by Rachel Staples-fabulous Southern Femme intern!

With all the summer music festivals, like Bonnaroo & Glastonbury, it’s important to dress ‘festival appropriate’ aka comfortable & ready for the heat.  And while these festivals are supposed to be all about the music, we all know deep down that it is a bit of a fashion show too!

While festivals do have their own trends & often crazy statements (see links below), they also stick to the summer must haves like earth tones, nature inspired jewelry, pops of bright colors & since you don’t want to layer your clothes leave that to your jewelry.

Coachella

Jetting from Paul McCartney to MIA, wear your eclectic best thrift & vintage finds paired with some rainbow hued Ray Ban-esque sunglasses.

Bonnaroo

This fashion style definitely mirrors the eclectic mix of bands (i.e. Black Keys & Neil Young) at the Tennessee based festival.  When you head to the country make sure to pack your earth mother maxi dress, tie dye tees, and floral romper.

Austin City Limits

Put on your best cowboy boots, cutoff denim, fringe vest, Alexander Wang tee and top it off with a fishtail braid when you hit up Kings of Leon, Girl Talk and Phoenix in Zilker Park.

Glastonbury

Channel your inner Kate Moss at this English countryside festival.  Think grunge chic with hints of plaid & day-glo…oh and definitely don’t forget your Hunter wellies!

Doing my monthly first ‘read’ through the May issue of InStyle Magazine (this consists of ooohing & ahhhing over the fashion spreads & seeing if there are any articles worth reading), I stumbled upon a article called ‘Mom’s Need Style Too! (Right?!)’.  Well I am not a mom & don’t plan on being one anytime soon BUT I have fabulous style coaching clients that are moms so I thought, what the hell I’ll take a look…And thank goodness I did!  WOW.  This article is from a mom’s point of view on what I preach, preach, preach to my clients & readers alike: you may be busy but take time for yourself!  You cannot be supermom, superwife, superbusiness woman without first taking care of yourself.  And a large part of that is your appearance, aka your wardrobe.  This is not meant to be shallow or superficial but just the truth, when you look great, you feel great & when you feel great (confidence y’all!), you genuinely want to look great!  Remember that feeling on the first day of school when you had your new outfit & you felt ready to take on the world (or at least 7th grade)…channel that ladies every day, no matter what the occasion, no matter what your job, age, style or body type.  Ok I’ll get off my soapbox & let y’all read on…(sorry for the chopped up article, wanted to make sure y’all could read every.single.word)

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Ok my fabulous southern women, tell me your thoughts…do you agree, disagree??  And remember I am here for you!  If you would like to know more about my style coaching services feel free to email me at megan@southernfemme.com for a free consultation!