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PASS HER BY: Aya Kanai

2009-12-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

The Jason Schwartzman sighting in Los Angeles was pretty amazing (even though we were slow to react) but there was one star we were hoping to see in particular - stylist Aya Kanai. We would have totally freaked the spots off Rachel Comey's Fall 2009 Dangerfield Cheetah Print Boots if we ran into her.

You cannot deny Kanai was one of New York City's chicest girls. Who could pass her by without noticing? She's like a real life Teen Vogue, Lula, Dossier and Nylon editorial... FULLY! Trust us, not many can pull off those styles so effortlessly. We tried. We failed. We cried. We learned. She taught us how to think outside of the bob - her bob. One just has to bring it down a notch (maybe two or three. Ok, four).

Now, we must share her with the West Coast but that's a good thing right? Well, whatever's good for Aya is good for us. According to the pics on Refinery29, girl looks pretty happy. We're sure she'll be back in NYC for the Fall shows. In the meantime, we'll just have to look through archives of her on Scott Schuman's The Sartorialist.

Check out what Aya's been up to by checking out her site Aya.Kanai.net.

WE'RE SO BROKE

2009-12-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts this month. We were busy trying to wrap-up our day job duties in preparation for our weekend trip to visit family in Los Angeles.

At first, LA seemed rather gloomy. It was wet, cold and cloudy but we fixed that with trips to our favorite haunts - Satine, TenOverSix and Confederacy, which had the sickest sales! We even had a star sighting at Opening Ceremony. Jason Schwartzman was there trying on some... actually, we didn't see what he was trying on. Embarrassingly enough, we thought he was a cut-out of Scott Sternberg's Band of Outsiders look book (he's so little - we like that). Once we realized it wasn't, it was too late. We were already upstairs admiring Carol Lim and Humberto Leon's merchandising magic. Its astonishing how the same clothes in LA can look so much more appealing than the ones in NYC if displayed differently. We ended up doing a little magic ourselves by making our money disappear.

Check out Refinery29 for sale listings in LA and NYC.

PASS HER BY: Susan Joy

2009-12-04T11:54:00.000-08:00

On our quest to find more images of masks last night (its like a drug at this point), we found this picture of stylist Susan Joy at a Halloween party on Style.com. We've seen her in passing many times and, trust us when we tell you this, she knows how to carry this look beyond Halloween. She has such great personal style. We could never mix prints like that!

We love Susan's work in the Thursday Styles section of the New York Times and, upon looking at her site, we are even more in love! We nearly fell to the floor just like the image she styled below. Oh, the joy of being Susan.

ALL SYSTEMS ARE GO!

2009-12-03T19:22:00.000-08:00

We love a party. Unfortunately, we don't get invited to many. That's why we are so happy that Julie Ho and Nicholas Andersen's Confetti System is now available at Urban Outfitters. Now every day at home can be a party! Just imagine sitting there all alone blogging with your disco-ball-pinatas, garlands and sparkly crowns all around you. Pretty (depressing), right? Will someone invite us to a party already? Please send all evites to tradeela@gmail.com.

Update: According to Style.com's Laird Borrelli-Persson, all the garlands were snatched up within the first hour of the launch party last night. Word on the street is that Bergdorf Goodman also carries them. Thanks for the tip, Laird. We love you!

FULLY: Rosalie Knox

2009-12-03T10:32:00.000-08:00

Since we are on the subject of masks, we thought we should share with you some images from Rosalie Knox's archive. We are fully into her photographs of Liz Goldwyn, Gang Gang Dance's Lizzi Bougatsos and artist Pearl Hsiung wearing masks. We may be crazy or totally obsessed with headpieces right now (look what you started, Sur Mes Pieds), but we think these ladies can pull off these looks day or night. Seriously, does Liz Goldwyn ever look bad? We're still pawing at the Style.com pic of her wearing cat-print Miu Miu.

WE WEAR OUR HEARTS ON MY FEET

2009-12-03T06:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a good day. Well, every day is a good day, but yesterday was one of those really special ones. We were skipping through the blogosphere and came across our first fan! We feel like Sally Field when she accepted her Oscar for Places in the Heart. "You like me. You really like me!" We're so grateful... and scared. Who is this masked blogger with the great wardrobe? We don't know whether to hide in their closet or raid it! Check out more of this beautiful monstrosity on Sur Mes Pieds.

If you know who this is, please email us at tradeela@gmail.com. We just want to ask them about their shoe collection.

PASS HER BY: Michelle Reneau

2009-12-02T06:45:00.000-08:00

Her hair is an unavoidable Manic Panic Flamingo Pink (see Phil Oh's Street Peeper photo above. We know its black & white. Use your imagination. We encourage it). Yet most of the time she goes unnoticed. She doesn't say much. She must be French. Her name is Michelle Reneau. She is French.

When we see her on the streets of Soho, we think of Nico's "These Days". "I've been out walking... I don't do too much talking these days..." No need to say a word, Reneau. Silence speaks a thousand words and, to us, you're styling speaks millions.

We came across one of her test shoots on her site and instantly fell in love with the images of Heather. So chic. So romantic. So effortless. So, ummm, French.

STYLE ICON DO IT: Christopher Robin

2009-12-01T06:45:00.000-08:00

We've always had a thing with girls that look like little boys. Just check out our last post featuring a very waifed and grunged out Emma Balfour. This is why Christopher Robin is one of our favorite style icons. His signature bowl cut could be seen way beyond the Hundred Acres Woods on our other girl crushes Chloe Sevigny, Michelle Williams and Lizzie Trullie. The best part is that his hairstyle is accessible. All you need is a bowl and a pair of scissors. I recommend Pyrex since its see through.

WE'RE SO BROKE...

2009-11-30T06:45:00.000-08:00

Our obsessions with A.P.C., Acne, Opening Ceremony, Stuart &Wright and Bird have us contemplating whether or not we would should take money out of either our monthly rent or food. Its sad, we know but we can't help it. Then we remembered this spread we once saw starring Emma Balfour styled in pieces found at Kmart. It reminds us that you don't have to have a big budget to look cool.

Here's a tip: If you haven't worn something in more than two seasons and its not a archival piece, bring it to Beacon's Closet in Brooklyn. They'll give you 35% of the cash or 55% store credit of the very price tag they put on your item. You can use the money to buy yourself a drink to ease the pain of that eviction notice.

By the way, if you remember what magazine this was from or what Emma is doing now, do tell us. We kinda have a girl crush on her.

THIS BLOG IS MY BLOG, THIS BLOG IS YOUR BLOG...

2009-11-27T09:30:00.000-08:00

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving! And thank you for visiting Tradeela!

On our site, you'll read about our random thoughts on art, fashion, food, people and pretty much anything that comes to mind. Hopefully, you'll like it. If not, its ok. Not everything is for everyone.

We'll be taking a break this holiday weekend but will be back on Monday. In the meantime, enjoy Corinne Day's pics of a 15 years old Kate dressed up as an Indian in THE FACE. If you're a true fan, you'll know that this was her introduction to the world. It was her first cover and spread. Cute, no? Who would have thought that an English girl who was discovered at JFK International Airport while vacationing with her parents would be, well, Kate. It kinda makes you think twice about holiday travel layovers, doesn't it?