Photo by Sherry Main

Whoever this bride is? You can skip this article. Also, dancing girl on end -- call me. I want to be friends with you.

I was a 36-year-old bridesmaid, and I lived to tell the tale. I'm telling it now, risking discovery of this article by the bride and the dissolution of our 30-year friendship. Shhhh. Quiet.

Anyone who has ever been in a wedding has horror stories to tell. Tyrannical brides, unexpected guests, terrible caterers, photographers who don't deliver the promised $3,000 worth of photos, mothers of the bride (or groom)...but this isn't a therapy session. This is an open plea to brides everywhere regarding one very specific, very expensive issue: the bridesmaid's dress.

PLUS! Tips to survive a bad one.

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Photo by lorigoldberg

These ladies know what's up.

Awesome fancy hats should not be reserved for British weddings, the Kentucky Derby and Downton Abbey-themed parties. Awesome fancy hats should be worn often, and the perfect time to start is now. Why don't people wear hats anymore? Is it because we have decided that hat etiquette is just too much work? Or are our heads just too hot from all the (ALLEGED) global warming?

There are so many reasons to wear awesome hats, and in Houston -- where the sunshine is so. freaking. relentless. -- what better time to look into procuring oneself an amazing summer chapeau?

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So it's pretty much summer, and all of the emails from my online lady-mags are delivering the Hottest Tips for a Beach Body, promising to show us Eleventy Hundred Flattering Swimsuits for Your Figure to my inbox. It's an exciting time to be opening emails. I know that any minute now I am going to put down the bowl of Kraft Mac n' Cheese I eat for lunch and pick up a salad. And then do some crunches, and then buy a bikini. Abdominals!

It's the time of year when every magazine promises to give us the keys to our dream beach body, with "specially designed workouts" and "carefully curated slideshows of swimsuits guaranteed to show off our best assets."

I'm still looking for the swimsuit that accentuates my sense of humor.

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Ladies, if you're like me, you've thrown away a thousand liquid eyeliners in disgust since the age of 13. It seems odd, in retrospect, that I couldn't master a pen for my face when so much of my youth was devoted to the practice of penmanship. (Do kids even learn cursive anymore, or do they go straight to iPads?)

I digress. Several months ago, I was in bed with a cold. I was lying in bed, bored, surfing the Web and flipping through old copies of Vogue and Vanity Fair when I began to notice a theme: Liquid liner cat eyes were everywhere; not only in the advertisements, but also in a dozen articles on the best liners for the job and Web tutorials on how to achieve the perfect cat eye.

I grabbed a makeup mirror, all the eyeliners/eyeliner tools in my possession and got to work.

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Photos By Marco Torres

Dave Grohl is seen here at his keynote speech sporting mature reading glasses, a crisp button-up, rock cred, and knowing full well your girlfriend would throw acid in your face to make out with him for ten minutes.

Wednesday was the first official day of music at SXSW here in Austin, with a black cloud of denim, beards and loafers overtaking the city from the Interactive nerds.

This also means that the fashion scene got a whole lot easier on the eyes, or more questionable, depending on your POV.

Let's look at this year's crop of Sixth Street models, shall we?

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Photo by Johntex

Valentine's Day is coming and you have a hot date--what to wear? Whether you are going out to dinner, seeing a show, or some combination thereof, it's always nice to look your best; this holds true whether your hot date is your significant other, or your own badass self.

There's no better place than the Internet when shopping/dreaming/compiling a wish list of great looks for Valentine's Day. Never fear, gents, there are a few suggestions for you as well.

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Photo by Lifetime

So, thanks for the head's up guys--Project Runway has been on for two weeks and no one told me! Last weekend I popped open a bottle of wine and settled in catch up on all the action--a mere four hours of PR: two 90-minute episodes, plus the one-hour Road to the Runway special where they introduce us to the season's contestants.

Season 11 really sneaked up on me, and as a result I was overcome anew as each wave of disappointment came crashing down upon me. Michael Kors is gone! Every challenge will be a team challenge! None of these designers seems even remotely melodramatic!
It was a rough reentry, but Project Runway waits for no woman.

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Prabal Gurung for Target

Another day, another capsule collection for Target. Prabal Gurung for Target launches Sunday, February 10 at Target stores around the country and, of course, at Target.com. Now that I have a few capsule collections under my belt (Missoni and Jason Wu, specifically) my gut instinct to get excited is tempered by memories of thrown elbows, Gang of Three Garment Grabbers, and (of course) buyer's remorse.

Prabal Gurung is a relatively new face in fashion, having launched his own collection--at New York Fashion Week--in 2009. His aesthetic is clean but feminine, and he has dressed fashion rock stars Michelle Obama and Kate Middleton, as well as "It Girl" Jennifer Lawrence, among many others.

Here's a quick peek at what you can expect, and a few tips to help you survive the madness at the Prabal Gurung for Target launch on February 10. No promises about whether you will emerge "unscathed" but these tips are designed to at least keep you competitive.

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Slowly but surely Target has been constructing a middle ground where upmarket designers can meet the masses who crave big-name labels, but can't afford the corresponding price tag. The trend started in the cosmetics and skincare departments through partnerships with Boots No. 7 and Jemma Kidd cosmetics and has morphed into full-on fashion frenzy with capsule collections by Missoni, Jason Wu, and their upcoming collaboration with Prabal Gurung.

Now we see Target expanding the capsule collection idea even further, as they announce a partnership with celebrity stylist Kate Young. Young has worked with A-list celebrities like Natalie Portman and Michelle Williams, in addition to styling for major fashion houses (Dior, Guerlain, Carolina Herrera).

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Photo by Chris Waits

When making a list of travel destinations for fashion lovers, one could probably just go with the following list and be done with it:

Paris

Paris truly remains the fashion capital of the world. No matter how many times you visit, or how long you stay, there will always be another fashionable nook or cranny to explore. Mademoiselle Chanel's original boutique remains at 31 rue Cambon; today a retail space that looks like any other Chanel store, but Mme.'s haute couture fitting area, personal apartments, and workrooms still occupy the floors above.

Who cares about the Louvre when you can visit Place Vendôme? Why spend an hour wandering Notre Dame when you could be shopping the pharmacie, snapping up Parisian drugstore favorites like NUXE Huile Prodigieuse, Caudalie, and La Roche-Posay?

Of course Paris isn't the only destination for fashion lovers, even if it is the most exciting. We have a few more suggestions for you.

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