My amiga Tomiko shared this video on her Facebook page, and I HAD to post it here for all to see.

The late, truly great designer Yves Saint Laurent was an innovator of style and a champion of black models in the fashion industry. Check out this fabulous AmberMag article for more. Oh, and I am newly in love with Voguespirit, this whole YouTube channel. It’ll transport you to a bygone, much more fabulous era.

I love the rich, meaningful pause he gives between his words — he reveals a true appreciation for black beauty. We need more of this in the fashion industry today, if you ask me. Yves Saint Laurent passed away in 2008 — but of course his brand will live on forever.

Clip is from Yves Saint Laurent – His Life and Times.

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I have only one TJ Maxx card in my hands…and that card goes to…

Commenter #5 – Nikia!

Congratulations!! We’re going shopping!! I can’t wait!!

I need to qualify that by saying this — all of you who entered this particular giveaway REALLY helped give me some fashion direction, and reassured me that I too can survive this winter thang with style. And it was EXTRA hard to choose a winner because I actually KNOW some of you who entered! So please don’t take it personally and PLEASE know we’re gonna hang out soon. Hopefully REALLY soon — there’s a fabulous Red Pump Project event coming up and I really really want you all to come out and party with me!

And if you didn’t win THIS giveaway, hang in there kitty — December is bringing the best giveaways I’ve ever had! So keep reading and keep entering!

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3. Wanted: Chicago’s Most Chic and Curvy Maxxinista!

Isn’t she lovely?

The beaming bella you see above is my homegirl Andrea — brilliant blogger of Fly, creator of awesome natural hair You Tube videos, and now creator of unique art that you can proudly adorn your walls with.

These prints are available to you at Andrea’s online store for the I Love My Hair project! This all began as a project for her thesis class, as Andrea herself explains in this post.

I love learning about the artistic process, and Andrea remains a continual inspiration. Her prints range from $25 to $30, and would make a fabulous gift for any Afrobella in your life during this holiday season (don’tcha think?)

Click here to get yours!

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As a plus size fashionista, I’ve respected your hustle for a while now. For years you’ve produced a steady and reliable line of plus size essentials. Tees, jeans, on-trend blouses. I’ve been there as a purchaser when you respected my demographic and sold plus size garments in your stores. And when you made women’s plus exclusively online I will admit, I felt shunned — but I continued to buy. Because I knew, if I was looking for an affordable, comfortable and chic tee, Old Navy would always be there for me with the right item at the right price.

So consider me outraged that you’d try to slide in an item like this super chic belted wool-blend cape — and have the audacity to charge $129 for it.

Those are Gap prices. Venturing into Banana Republic territory.

Old Navy, what are you doing? That prices doesn’t even look right as the cape shares screen space with its outerwear peers — which currently max out at $82.

Old Navy, for years I have loved you as the kind of store I could spend $100 and at least get an entire outfit from. Maybe more, if I really rummaged through the clearance aisle. I see you trying to elevate your style game with this admittedly trendy-yet-classic cape, but really. This is wool-blend. Not even 100% wool. And for an item that’s only sold online that I can’t try on or touch…ich don’t think so.

Consider this some friendly advice from a frequent and fond consumer — stay in your lane and consider your consumer. It’s entirely possible to step up your designs and still remain as affordable as ever. I’m sincerely hoping you find a way. Until then, I’ll be biding my time until this cape comes down to under $50 on clearance. My day will come, if I just wait a while.

Bestest,
Afrobella

PS: my curvy homegirl Marie Denee feels the same way.

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Chicago has been having an unusually warm autumn and this bella is not complaining! It just gives me more time to rock my late-summer gear, and get ready for the cold weather that is inevitably a-coming. I’ve been thinking long and hard about the items I need to enhance my wardrobe, and I realize that I need HELP!

True story: I don’t know how to layer. I think I have it down pat, them my husband looks over my outfit and lets me know that ain’t it. (and he’s not exactly Tim Gunn, so I KNOW I’m struggling).

I apparently don’t realize what kinds of garments I need to get through the upcoming wind and cold with style and self-expression. And I don’t quite get how to put it all together to the most fashionable effect.

So I need help from someone who knows how to WORK IT in Chicago’s unfriendliest season. I’m on the look out for Chicago’s most chic, curvy fashionista, to join me on a shopping spree at TJ Maxx!

For this very unique giveaway, TJ Maxx has provided a $250 gift card for one lucky winner’s purchasing pleasure. The winner will use that $250 and join me in shopping for fall fashion essentials. And we’ll film a little video about our coolest finds, to share with Afrobella readers!

Does that not sound FUN?

So Maxxinistas — mount up! Do you have this cold weather fashion thing down? Leave me a comment describing your personal cold weather style. If you’ve got links to photos online, share with me! I’m going to leave these comments open until Wednesday, and choose a winner ASAP so we can go get our shop on! The air’s getting chilly and I’m ready to be in style before Christmas!

*** edited Wednesday at 8:05 CST – Bellas!! You blew me away with your AWESOME suggestions. I’ll choose a winner by the end of today from the 15 comments received so far, so hang in there! And guess what — I have some GREAT giveaways coming up next, so keep reading, keep entering and if it isn’t your turn this time it might be the next time!

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1. Curvy, Chic, and Crafty
2. Who Won the TJ Maxx Giveaway?
3. Earth Day Eco-Chic – Reuseable Shopping Bags

For real, my cute little ballet flats aren’t gonna cut it anymore in this weather.

Currently I have two pairs of boots, and I’m definitely looking for more.

I’ve been stomping the streets of Chitown in my Knot-Tie Ankle Boots, courtesy of Silhouettes. They’re comfortable, stylish, flat (which is very important for me, with my flat-as-a-board feetsies) and be dressed up or down. I’ve worn these with a little black dress and tights, and I’ve worn em with jeans. They look chic with both! I’ve got my eye on those Double Buckle Sport Boots, too!

I was looking for a cold-weather knee high boot that could keep my feet dry and warm while still looking fly with jeans. Also, I have plus size calves (to support my fabulous plus size body, hello) and I need boots that fit comfortably. Most leather zip-up boots don’t do the job.

I found what I was looking for last week at Bloomingdales! But they’re not on their website for some reason… so here’s a link. My salesfriend at Bloomies (shout out to Danielle!) got a real vibe for what I needed, and clued me into Pajar. She says these boots are known for lasting a long time and withstanding the elements amazingly. They fit like a dream, are made of all man-made materials (no fur for me, thanks!) and cost less than $200! SOLD!

Because of my foot-related issues, I can’t afford to mess around with a pair of boots that are purely fashionable. I need boots that are flat, fly, and functional. Boots that I’ll want to wear regardless of season, that feel good and reflect my funky fashion sensibilities. So right now I’m seriously contemplating investing in a pair of iconic Dr. Martens 14-eye boots. My husband swears by his Dr. Martens, and I know they last forever. The other shoes I’m looking at prefer to be known as “anti shoes.”

The MBT Goti boots have a clunky, funky, retro-futuristic Tank Girl kind of pizzazz, and I’d work them with pride.

MBT stands for Masai Barefoot Technology — the shoes have a curved sole and “activate your muscles instead of undermining them.” Hmmm. I’ve read blog posts that sound a cautionary note, but my curiosity continues unabated. I tried on a pair of MBT’s recently and absolutely loved the sensation as I strolled around the store. But are they comfortable for like, a day of walking around the city and going up and down subway stairs? I wanna know. If you’ve worn a pair of these – leave me a comment and let me know if they’re worth the money!

Those are the boots currently on my radar. They’re not the all-the-rage stiletto heeled over-the-knee variety, but I gotta think of comfort first – because if I’m not comfortable, I don’t feel at my most attractive anyway.

I’ll work on another post for you footwear fiends — all about boots for gals with calves like mine! What kind of boots are you buying for the holidays?

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Gone are the days when people shopped with whimsy. Now I go armed with a list, and double guess myself on every item I buy. Now instead of ooh that’s really cute I want it, it’s ooh that’s really cute but will I ever wear it? Probably not, get the sensible item instead you know you’ll wear that more than once.

I have a beer budget, but oh those champagne dreams won’t go away. So I’ve had to become an expert in my own right. I’ve had to learn how to get what I want, for cheap. And now I’m gonna pass along some of my best discoveries.

You want — hot Fall fashion.

How to get it — avoid the regular retail stores and bypass those trendy boutiques. As cute as everything is there, you’ll wind up paying more there than you will at an off-price store like TJ Maxx, Marshalls, or my latest haunt, Filene’s Basement. (Sadly, there is no Ross in Illinois. I miss Ross!)

If you’re not used to shopping at stores like these, a brief tutorial. This won’t be an in-and-out shopping trip. Be prepared to spend time sifting through disorganized racks of clothes.

Also, know your stores: TJ Maxx is more about trendy clothes and beauty products, Marshalls is more about shoes, purses, and fly accessories — and the hip teen section in the middle called The Cube. Many of the items available at these off price stores aren’t previous season duds, they’re currently being sold in stores or online… but the vendor may have ordered more than they can sell to department stores. Their miscalculation = your shopportunity, as they say! My recent purchases include a super fly retro-styled denim jacket from TJ Maxx, a cosy and classic V-neck Jones New York sweater from Marshalls, and a stunning crinkled parachute-material skirt from XCVI, that I recall seeing on Zappos for like, $100, I got at Filene’s Basement for $29.95. SO glad I waited and didn’t rush to buy it online. I’d say a good 95% of my shopping is done at off-price stores. These three are my favorites, then there’s Nordstrom Rack which has amazing high end finds…but the prices still aren’t as affordable as the Maxx, Marshalls, or Filene’s. FYI.

You want… furniture for your home.

Where to get it… NOT at a mainstream furniture store, that’s for sure. Have you ever been to a Thomasville store before? The prices are insane! Like, you’re gonna need to have a special credit card just for this purchase, insane. I don’t know about you, but I just can’t afford to pay full price for items like that right now. But I did get a relatively new, great-looking Thomasville dresser about a month ago, from a most unexpected source.

Three words: hotel furniture liquidators.

Do a Google search to see if there are any near where you live. I got lucky — here in Chicago there are THREE hotel furniture liquidation centers. For my Chicago bellas and fellas, I’ll save you some time right now. Cooper Furniture and Carpet is five floors of crazy. Seriously, they could film a horror movie here — the upper floors are just piles and piles of lampshades, old carpet and ugly chairs, and what’s that in the stairwell? Is that a dead pigeon or just a huge pile of feathers? What’s that…smell? Yikes. There are finds for sure, but they’re probably all on the first floor and I wish you all the best in getting someone to help you.

The shopping experience was like night and day, when I went to Fort Pitt Furniture. This place is on a whole ‘nother level. For a super fun shopping experience, you need to go in on Monday or Friday, when Phyllis is working. Who’s Phyllis? She’s a 6-foot-tall sista who will break it down for you, when it comes to finding the best deals in the store. And oh, there are some deals to be had. I got a beautiful, mahogany, marble topped kitchen cabinet/pantry thingy for $120. A Thomasville dresser for $150. And best of all, an enormous wood armoire to hold all my clothes, makeup, and hair products for $99. I said $99! Try finding something like THAT at any other furniture store.

Not the best photo, I took it with my phone. Sorry =(

For other affordable furniture purchases, there’s always IKEA and Craigslist….but Craigslist requires patience and sometimes you just can’t wait forever. For accent pieces and accessories, you need to find out where the nearest Home Goods is. Home Goods is the domestic branch of the TJ Maxx/Marshalls company, and there are fantastic finds there. I bought a gorgeous rug for my bathroom for less than $10, and this was the kind of fluffy rug that would retail at Pier One or Bed Bath and Beyond for over $20.

Another way to find furniture and home decor on the cheap is to look for store closings. Sadly, not every retail chain is sailing through these rough economic seas. But where there’s a store closing, there are items being sold for insanely cheap. This past weekend, I found out that a local Cost Plus World Market was closing. Floor models were moving fast, but the shelves weren’t yet picked clean… and I managed to get the most amazing fluffy white shag rug — originally $300, now $130. SCORE! Even the shelves and fixtures are up for grabs, so if you’re in the Orland Park area — go now!

I’m gonna return to this subject soon — look out for future tips on affordable food shopping, and beauty buys! Where are YOUR affordable shopping secret places? Share with me!

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Sometimes I do respond with an automatic side-eye where maybe I should try to be more open in my approach. I tried to tread lightly and just put the question out there to the universe, so I especially appreciate those of you who stated your dissent with diplomacy.

Fashion posts can be fascinatingly polarized. On one side are those like me, who are sometimes baffled by the fashion world’s exclusions and misappropriation of culture. Then on the other side there are the fashion apologists, who defend everything as being art and therefore completely acceptable.

One word kept coming up in the comments, and it’s a word that also came up in the news last week. Here’s a phrase I hope never to repeat:

Last week was a big one for blackface.

First, that most antique and offensive of caricatures got a big ol’ thumbs down from Harry Connick Jr. in Australia.

Now the October issue of French Vogue is continuing the trend, in a photoshoot starring Dutch model Lara Stone, photographed by Steven Klein and styled by editor Carine Roitfeld.

Le sigh.

It’d be one thing if this “supermodel” themed issue was balanced with other models of color in their own photoshoots, or if they even — gasp — borrowed a page from an old concept on America’s Next Top Model, and switched the races of the models. I tried hard to think of what would make this less offensive to me, and I had a hard time coming up with anything…but maybe if there were a model of color styled similarly, it’d defuse my ire a little. But as it is right now, I must agree with The Fashion Bomb and Jezebel — a white model painted black is distasteful and evocative of a negative chapter in the world’s history.

Yes, it’s meant to be artistic. Perhaps it’s even meant to make some kind of deeper statement or commentary. I realize blackface has a different history outside of the US, but to me this photo shoot falls far short of its goal. It leaves me wondering — why not also use a black model in this issue?

Last week, I got quite a few comments saying “if it were blackface, I’d have a problem,” that kind of thing. So what are your views on this?

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I’ve been told that my whole life. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve gotten better at covering it up, but I’m still a pretty sensitive Piscean soul. Quick to feel empathy, quick to love, quick to be offended. So maybe I’m not the best bella to respond to the hot new style strutting down the runway at the Louis Vuitton show at Paris Fashion Week. The style statement? Oversize afro wigs on all the models. Which are being called brilliantly cartoonish by the WWD.

Like I said, I’m oversensitive. To me, my hair isn’t comic relief, it isn’t “cartoonish,” it isn’t a style statement. It grows out of my head this way. So my general response to people in afro wigs, at sports games, on Halloween, is The People’s Eyebrow and a we-are-not-amused attitude. It irks me. Am I wrong?

I saw these pics over at one of my favorite blogs, NY Mag’s The Cut, and my eyes practically rolled themselves on out of my face. Really, LV? Afro wigs are what’s hot in the streets now? Is this an attempt to be more inclusive?

Hey – at least there was one model of color in the show, right? Edited 2:45 p.m. — I stand corrected — there were several models of color in the show. Click here to see the complete WWD slideshow, more black models hit the runway towards the show’s finale, it appears.

I dunno, y’all. Talk amongst yourselves. Am I being oversensitive, as per usual? Or should I be delighted that afros are making waves at Paris Fashion Week this year?

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1. Ethnically Ambiguous?
2. Allo, Blackface
3. Weekend Rewind — Louis Armstrong’s Other Artistry

Sometimes I host a giveaway and wonder — how will my bellas respond to this one? Not so much for the fly giveaway I hosted with Cut It Out Apparel — I know my readers are strong, bold, intelligent women with opinions to share — and Cut It Out’s teeshirts are SO very very Afrobella. Statement shirts!

The brilliant designers of Cut It Out helped me choose 3 lucky winners while I was at Fashion Week. And here they are!

The “Destroy Stereotypes” tee goes to Debbie, who says:

I love the “Destroy Stereotypes” shirt because through out my life I have fought to do exactly that. As an immigrant from Jamaica I fought my teachers in grade school who believed that as a foreigner I wasn’t as smart and did not know english, despite my advanced education gained in the islands. As one of a handful of students of color in a predominantly white affluent boarding school I once again bucked the stereotypes others tried to place on me by not being the token ghetto girl and by beating out most of my class for an acceptance to an Ivy League institution. Even though many claimed it was a result of Affirmative Action I knew it was because of my hard work and prayers. Once in college, I realized that once again my fight would have to continue as I found myself the only woman or the only student of color in my upper level science courses. I was unfazed and continued to work my hardest. Upon returning home from school, I repeatedly met old classmates and friends from my youth who were astonished that I had not fallen victim to the stereotype that my town has of churning out teenage mothers. Now as I enter in my doctoral studies, I realize that my fight against stereotypes will never be over. However, I face each new challenge and “box” that society attempts to place around me as my motivation to succeed.

The My Name is Not… tee goes to Mignon, who says:

Love the destroy stereotypes tee. The message is relevant and timely. Especially now. But, I SO need the “my name is not shorty” tee. I’m short (5 foot even). So I’m short and pretty cute so men think calling me “shorty” is cute. Uh, no no Boo Boo! My name is Mignon. K? Thanks! It frustrates me to no end. Maybe with this shirt, I wont have to breathe any words of disgust. I’ll stop the madness before it starts.

Anyways, thanks for hipping us to this company. Love supporting black owned businesses of relevance.

And last but not least, the CIO Peace tee goes to CoilsnKinks who said :

I am really digging CIO Peace. Its a message I would never hesitate to portray. I think that we should be able to walk around and exude an attitude that is amiable and not be so closed or angry. When we start there we can actively seek peace in our lives and in the lives of others. CIO PEACE!

Thank you SO much, Tirinda and Noricia, for offering your awesome tees to Afrobella readers, and for helping me choose winners at the busiest time of my life!

Didn’t win a Cut It Out tee? Click here to buy one for yourself!

Stay tuned, bellas — I’ve got some AWESOME, epic giveaways coming up!

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