[In early adulthood there is an activity that plays a large role in most of our lives; nights out on the town. And with those nights out always comes the question: “What am I gonna wear?!?”

Each week I’ll be putting together a cute and affordable “going out” ensemble guide (that you can tweak to your own personal style and body type, of course) so that maybe that age-old question can be answered a little quicker than usual. And your friends aren’t waiting - for hours - for you to emerge from your room. Just consider me your own (free) personal Rachel Zoe.]

Once fall/winter hits, we tend to shy away from bright colors and lean more toward blacks, grays, and earth tones. That’s fine - winter is kinda cold and depressing. I get it. But you shouldn’t be afraid to rock out some color this time of year.

Part of being fashion forward is breaking fashion rules, and busting out a brightly colored top in the colder seasons is a great way to brighten up your day/night, and is sure to make you stand out in a crowd. Read More »

We all look to magazines for our fashion sense and know-how, but what if we can’t afford all those styles in Elle and on the runway? College Candy understands your pain (because we also like to split our budget between cocktails and clothes) and we want to help you get the fabulous looks at a fraction of the price.

This winter jeweled clutches are all the rage. After Sex and the City, Fendi has become way more popular, but who can REALLY afford a small clutch for more than a grand? Here is cheaper version…on the left is the Fendi, on the right is a La Regale from Macy’s for a mere $39.00. Read More »

God, it feels good to be single again. I recently broke up with my boyfriend of two years, and I know that this move solidified my future as an old maid. I know I’ll never find a guy more perfect for me than my ex, and that I’ll probably die alone. But, damn, it feels good to be single.

When you’re single, it can be hard to sit back and watch your attached girlfriends in their romantic endeavors. They get flowers from their boyfriends; they always have a date to a party; they have someone to cuddle with in the morning. But they also don’t have the opportunities that you have as an independent woman.

My (ex)boyfriend and I had been doing the long-distance thing for a while. I am currently trying to find my career path, but I had to keep trying to get a job close to him. This eliminated a plethora of job opportunities for me. When you get ready to graduate college, you can move anywhere you want or take any job that’s offered to you.

The girls who are involved have to make their life decisions with their partner. True, they can opt for the long-distance thing, but that still makes moving much harder than it does for you, the single gal with no emotional baggage.

Since reemerging onto the singles scene, I’ve also been feeling less stressed. Personally, I’ve had a lot on my plate lately, and I felt like even the daily “goodnight” phone call was cutting into what little time I have to spend on everything else. It takes effort to make a relationship work. True, it’s great to have a boyfriend to vent to or to seek reassurance from, but when you are trying to balance jobs, school, extracurriculars, and other responsibilities, sometimes it’s nice to be able to focus on you without feeling selfish. Read More »

Concept: Knife pleats/Issey Miyake

Once upon a time in late 2006, I really needed a job. I hopped on Craigslist, blindly sent out a couple of resumes, sat back and watched the replies roll in. One such interview opportunity came from Soho’s own Pleats Please by Issey Miyake store. Why would anyone want to wear that many pleats?, I asked myself, unable to shake the image of Alicia Silverstone in Clueless from my head. So I never responded. And now I am regretting it. Not only have I discovered how the high-fashion futuristic feel of tiny knife pleats is about as far as one can get from looking like a “Baby One More Time” video reject; I have also learned that the construction of tightly-pleated fabric allows it to stand up and out in a way that wouldn’t otherwise happen with the same material components! Plus, the brand name is polite! Check out how Miyake’s pieces are made!

I know not everything I write about will be wearable or, mostly, affordable, for most college students, or most people. But, if you’re willing to try, there are probably plenty of look-alikes available at your local thrift shop. I just picked up a metallic blue crumpled/pleated dress at The Vintage Thrift Shop in Flatiron and a to-die-for black pleated scarf from Reminiscence in Chelsea. The aforementioned aren’t even wildly-priced designer vintage spots, but mid-to-low-priced stores, devoid of pretentious waif-like salesgirls to boot. SVA students, I hope you’re listening! Read More »

So you have a big dance coming up, or just a big night out, but you’re tottering around precariously in your new heels. What to do? You may want to grab a copy of the book How to Walk in High Heels, but not for reading…for balance!

When I was getting ready for my prom I found myself face to face with my first pair of killer heels–my skirt was about 2 miles too long for my super-short legs, so I had to buy the tallest heels I could find just to keep my skirt from dragging in the grass. A family friend came over one day to find me wobbling around the kitchen in sweatpants and my new heels, wondering how I was going to stay afloat for an entire evening.

She handed me a book, and told me to put in on my head.

Huh?

I did as I was told, and balanced the book on the top of my head. “Now let go of it, and keep it balanced”. The book was steady. “Now: walk!” she commanded, and I did. I was SO focused on keeping the book from falling off my head, I barely noticed that I was walking (almost gracefully!) across the floor in my heels.

I totally rocked my prom, and I’ve never been afraid of another pair of sky-high heels again!

Days as a Freshman: 194
Mood: Protective

“what’d you do this weekend?” Naima, Rebecca and I were walking back from the science building, each of us weighed down by the heavy books of our respective classes. For the first time all week, the sun was out, and it was more than twenty degrees. We could walk slowly, pull our scarves away from our faces and actually talk, instead of running from one class to another.

“I didn’t do much…” Heaving my backpack higher onto my shoulders, I dodged a puddle next to me on the grass. “Just sort of stayed in and studied.”

“What?” Naima was obviously disgusted. “You studied? On Saturday?”

Rebecca laughed, sliding her eyes over to mine. She had been in studying with me most of the weekend, but had the sense to keep her mouth shut about her lack of excitement.

“It was too cold!”

“Too cold?” Naima was even more disgusted. “I can’t believe we’re friends. The weather is no excuse to stay away from parties!”

I dodged another puddle and smiled helplessly, hoping that Naima would see my reclusive weekend as simple laziness. The truth was that I hadn’t been going out for a few weekends now. There were people I didn’t want to see. Read More »

Confession: I wear high heels to the grocery store. And to run errands. And to get the mail. And well, just about everywhere.

As a top-heavy petite girl, I rely on heels to balance me out and give my legs that lean, toned, non-stumpy look that tall girls seem to be able to pull off in a pair of bunny slippers.

I’ve had my share of bad heel experiences, but flats have yet to get a second glance from me—blisters, bad posture, and numb toes be damned!

Well, it seems I was on to something. A study in Italy found that stilettos can be good for your sex life. No, you don’t have to put on a pair of your highest heels before climbing into bed with your guy—just wearing heels during daily activity was found to strengthen pelvic muscles, toning more than just your legs.

Researcher Dr. Maria Cerruto said her study of 66 women under 50 found that those who held their foot at a 15 degree angle to the ground - the equivalent of a two inch heel - showed less electrical activity in their pelvic muscles, suggesting the muscles were at an optimum position, which could well improve their strength and ability to contract (in other words, these are the muscles that keep you feeling “tight.”) Combine heel wearing with Kegels and you’ll be unstoppable. Read More »

Sometimes trends are so ridiculous (and downright hideous) that while I put the title of “Trend Watch” on this article…I sincerely hope that this new item will never bear the title of “trendy”.

On that note, say hello to Spats!

These absurdly overpriced leather covers are made to cover your already expensive high heels to give you more variety; more options.

Awesome, just what we all need…something to make us even later in the morning!

Not only that, but if you ask me, these gladiator-esque shoe coverings look really f*cking dated. Weren’t these on the fringe of being cool, like, 3 years ago?

Also, who the hell do we think we are? Mr. Peanut? Victorian era, old-timey, wealthy gentlemen?

Possothespat.com is offering these ugly little things for bundles of cash. And in what looks to be an atempt to be edgy, they have taken pictures of girls with only okay looking feet to pose on toilet seats with these things on. Scandalous! Read More »