Holiday Style Tips per LILL's Design Team

I asked Jamie from the Design Team what she was looking forward to for Holiday style and to give us some tips on how to dress for that next party.

Here are some fun tips for Holiday 2007 per Jamie!

“Here in Chicago, Holiday is always about a desperate attempt to escape the cold, grey, terrible, dark winter, and the endless days of practical fleeces, snow boots, bulky sweaters, claustrophobic turtlenecks, and my ubiquitous puffy coat that I am ready to burn already in December. But this season more than ever we will have ample opportunity to escape into a heady world of Shangri-La as stores will be filled with clothes and accessories that gilded, glowing, and sumptuous as fashion takes us on a trip down the Spice Road...
I'm looking forward to wearing a spicy palette of saffron, cinnabar red, and nutmeg brown. I'll add color and sparkle to that with pops of turquoise teal, gold dust, plum, and emerald green.












Even though I'll spend my December trudging through black ice, doing my best to dodge the yellow snow on the sidewalk, in my mind I'll be following the trade winds on an exotic journey to Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, all the way to the Far East. Jewels, gems, precious metals, baubles, and spice - Holiday 07 is going to be a party, for sure!

I'll be celebrating with sumptuous velvets and suedes, the luster of satin, patterns inspired by ornate architecture - temples, pagodas, filigrees & arabesques, along with rich paisleys, ornate jacquards and damasks, shimmering metallics, and decadent brocades. This is the season to gild the lily. For my part I'm going to be sure to have one last hurrah before fashion becomes sober and minimal again. And what better time to load up & pile it on than the Holidays?

In terms of accessories, I'm going for it this year: hats, costume jewels, dramatic belts -- maybe I’ll even be brave (or crazy) enough to work a turban or some gloves into my ensembles. For my handbag, the crowning jewel of any well-planned outfit, I'll be carrying CORA, ADRIENNE, and GRACE to all my holiday parties.



CORA I love for its dramatic, oversized grommets, substantial metal chain, and deco-inspired sunburst pin tucks. And, most importantly, it has an adjustable strap. Double it up through the grommets and you have a sleek little bag to wear on your wrist or over the shoulder for the office Christmas party. Let it hang long and you can wear across your body on New Year's Eve when it's time to get down on the dance floor or for those occasions when one finds oneself with both a cocktail and a glass of champagne ...












ADRIENNE I love for its vintage elegance. I'll be making mine with one of our modern, graphic fabrics to keep the look young and current. Its framed shape stands up well to the architectural silhouettes I plan on wearing this Holiday.

And GRACE I will need on those winter nights when I've spent the whole day feeling decidedly shapeless underneath all my practical layers and needs something decidedly feminine to cheer me up. GRACE is just the thing for that mood - it's delightfully coquettish in pink velvet Baroque-inspired floral with a mauve-y pink ruffle - a little convection fit for a queen (Marie Antoinette?).













But for me, I'll be making my GRACE out of a moody, emerald flocked taffeta for a femme fatale/Old Hollywood inspired look, doing my best to channel the smoldering glamour of Greta Garbo, even if I have my snow boots on. "








Thanks so much for the design tips Jamie! You have inspired me to go out and get myself ready for my next holiday party!
-Lilly S.

Have a holiday style tip you'd like to share? Please send them to me to help others get inspired for holiday dress! lilly@1154lill.com