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Pastels, rainbows, sparkles, clouds, tulle, stars, flowers, sugar, spice, everything nice… Now all we need is a little bit of Chemical X and we can make the Powerpuff Girls. If you’ve ever wanted to dress like you were materialized into the fantasy world of an eight-year-old girl (in the best way possible), then you might want to take a seat while I tell you about Lirika Mitoshi, a small, online brand that gained notoriety on Etsy for their dreamy, embellished tights. I discovered them during one of my rare Pinterest browsing sessions. I guess that website is good for some things sometimes.

Lirika Mitoshi- with all of their poofy, tulle dresses; bejeweled shirts and socks; and shimmery, ethereal gowns embellished with sequin hearts and stars- is basically like the distilled essence of innocence, sweetness, and dreams. One look at these incredible, indulgent pieces will make your teeth sore. And while each piece is a little more pricey than what I usually purchase (they range from like ~$100 – ~$300), I can still see myself buying something to wear for some kind of special event, like a birthday party, or a music festival.

I think what I like most about these clothes are that, while fun and a little silly with all of their girlish sparkle and garish colors, they’re still super wearable, too. A sheer dress embellished with sequin stars can be worn over a T-shirt and jeans for an extra layer of detail. The fuzzy, blue skirt can be paired with a crisp, white blouse to balance out the camp-y texture and color. Studded socks can add a magical touch to pretty much any outfit.

You don’t need to be all-in with the ~*kawaii*~ aesthetic to add some whimsy to your wardrobe- just little touches here and there can make a huge statement and refresh classic outfit combinations you’ve worn a million times before. The magic is all in the details, and there are plenty of swoon-worthy ones here to make you fall in love with the Lirika Mitoshi brand and the possibility of fantasy in fashion.

Check out some of my favorite pieces currently listed on their site below. I can’t wait to see what they create next!

All photos from the Lirika Mitoshi website.

This post is not sponsored 🙂

It’s the first Monday in May AKA fashion’s biggest night- The Met Gala, a yearly gathering where celebrities and cultural influencers meet at the Met in New York City dressed to the nines according to the theme of the Met Costume Institute’s exhibit that year. This year brought us “Camp: Notes On Fashion” along with a metric ton of feathers and an army of unforgettably-creative looks that made me gasp in reverie and laugh at just how refreshingly comical it all is.

What is camp? -you might be asking. The exhibit aims to help answer that question, but still falls short. It’s failed seriousness and attempted sarcasm. It’s overindulgence and performance. Think: the extravagant lifestyle of Marie Antoinette, a mile-high fruit hat worn by a samba dancer, or the over-the-top persona of a drag queen. According to Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay “Notes on ‘Camp,'” from which this year’s Met exhibit gleaned much of its inspiration: “The essence of Camp is its love of the unnatural: of artifice and exaggeration.”

So, as you can imagine, this would make for a ton of really wacky and equally whimsical red carpet looks from our favorite celebrities. I waited in eager anticipation for tonight, and I definitely wasn’t disappointed!

I’ve gone through all of the red carpet photos and chose a few of my favorites to report on. While everyone looked really amazing, I only chose the looks that felt really creative to me, and weren’t just over-the-top for the sake of being over-the-top, with feathers and ruffles and tulle and all that good, campy stuff. I was looking for something I hadn’t ever really seen before, and was pleasantly surprised by how many truly amazing looks there were to choose from! Check out my picks below:

Absolute Top Favorite Looks of the 2019 Met Gala:

Lily Collins as Lisa Marie Presley

EXCUSE ME. Who gave Lily Collins the right to slay us all with this perfect look? It is by far my favorite look of the night in part because I’ve always loved the over-the-top beauty aesthetic of Priscilla Presley (the poofed hair, the winged eyeliner, the eternal youth- UGH!) and in part because Lily Collins just pulls it off so dang well. The headband, over the top hair, and ruffled dress all pair perfectly to create a look I’ll never forget!

lily collins dressed as priscilla presley at the 2019 met gala

Lady Gaga’s Metamorphosis

Camp is Lady Gaga’s specialty- one she’s been dishing out for years, ever since she hit it big in 2009, serving us looks like dresses made from a range of odd materials like Kermit plushes and meat, and creating spectacles, like when she showed up to an awards show in an egg. The fact that Lady Gaga is actually a persona is the essence of camp. All of this to say, I was expecting the Queen of Camp to outdo everyone on the red carpet- and she did, by serving not one, but four looks that she slowly revealed as she made her entrance alongside an entourage of backup dancers and makeup artists. When asked how anyone could follow Gaga’s surprising arrival, Anna Wintour replied that you simply couldn’t, and you should just go home.

Zendaya is Our Very Own Disney Princess

Zendaya has always been one of my favorite celebrities just because of how wholesome she is. Although she’s been a Disney channel star for pretty much her whole career, she never ended up falling off the deep end like many child stars do after missing out on having a normal childhood- which is why this recreation of Cinderella’s iconic blue dress is so endearing! Plus, the dress lights up, creating an even cooler look and an unforgettable moment of magic where her longtime stylist, dressed as the fairy godmother, lit the dress up with his wand.

zendaya as cinderella in a light up dress at the met gala 2019 camp

Diane Von Furstenberg x Lady Liberty

Iconic designer Diane Von Furstenberg looked positively radiant in her look inspired by Lady Liberty that featured an oversized print of a painting of herself done by Andy Warhol. You can’t get much more camp than wearing art of yourself, especially when it’s done by Warhol, a king of Pop Art and campy culture.

diane von furstenberg in a lady liberty dress at the 2019 met gala camp

Barbie: Kacey Musgraves Edition

Kacey Musgraves charmed us all in her monochrome, hot pink outfit inspired by Barbie- complete with shiny, silver pumps, a handbag shaped like a hairdryer, and long, blonde waves. Box her up and she would be any girl’s dream doll!

kacey musgraves dressed in hot pink as a barbie at the 2019 met gala camp

Katy Perry Lights Up the Red Carpet

How could I make this list without mentioning Katy Perry’s extremely extra chandelier costume? I mean, it’s so delightfully unexpected that I couldn’t help but smile, then appreciate the insane craftsmanship that went into making this incredibly intricate dress that actually lit up. Mad props, Katy Perry, this looks was fire (literally)!

katy perry as a chandelier at the 2019 met gala camp

Honorable Mentions

Cover photo from The New York Times. All other photos from Getty Images.

While May leers at us from around the corner, we Texans and other citizens of the American south are beginning to get the first hints of summer, with temperatures already reaching into the high 80s. And while I loath to admit that our mild days are, for the most part, on the outs, I’ve already begun shaping my vision of the perfect summer in my mind.

Others may consider free time spent on exotic vacations, lounging on bright beaches in their perfect bikini body to be their dream summer, but my fantasies don’t extend the confines of my own skull. I’m talking about attitude, perspective, peace of mind. I’m talking about learning how to float on top of the waves and just not care so much. I’m talking about just having fun for once gosh darn it. And the refreshing, lighthearted Chanel Spring 2019 collection helped to solidify my goals of just chilling the heck out this summer.

yellow tweed skirt suit from chanel spring summer 2019 fashion runway show
Some of my favorite looks from the Chanel Spring 2019 collection emulated the warmth and joy of soft sunshine with their bright, yellow shades. (Photo: Vogue.com)

One of Karl Lagerfeld’s last collections, the Chanel Spring 2019 show perfectly exemplified the youthful energy that Lagerfeld sought to imbue into all of his collections with its pastel palette and playful, oversized silhouettes. The fact that models walked barefoot across a fabricated beach (complete with waves) speaks to the amount of commitment Lagerfeld had for creating fun collections that served no higher purpose other than to delight, and the oversized ’80s-esque silhouettes further demonstrated this sense of carefree wonder by emulating the spontaneous joy of a young girl (or boy!) playing dress up in their mother’s most glamorous attire.

The whole collection spoke to some deep and underutilized part of my heart that yearns for the days of languid, childhood summers where the only thing you had to worry about was how many days there were left until school started again. Just a small dose of that effortless, carefree state of mind would do me wonders- which is why I’m making it my goal this summer to fabricate my own vacation of the mind, to escape the stresses and anxiety of my adult life.

Anyways- some of the best aspects of this beachy Chanel collection are the ones where Lagerfeld plays with your expectations by adding childlike elements to proper pieces, like pairing slick bike shorts with a prim sweater, or splitting the legs of a tweed jumpsuit to give it summery flow. Some of my favorite looks from the collection were rendered in a punchy yellow that immediately drew the eye and, again, transported me back to happy summers that I wished would never end.

Here’s to hoping that my summer will be as nice as the feeling of walking barefoot on a (synthetic) beach.

Check out some of my favorite looks from the collection below:

All photos from Vogue.com

An article about menswear? On this website? No, that can’t be right. If you thought any of those things, then I don’t blame you. Menswear has never interested me in any serious capacity because it has never had the same pull on me as women’s fashion. Because of the strict societal expectations on masculinity and how men should express it, men’s fashion options are limited, and there isn’t as much room for the whimsy and fantastical details that I’m usually drawn to. Because of this, I become particularly fond of any menswear collection that strays from the mold, which Bode manages to do in their latest collection for Fall 2019.

bode fall winter 2019 whimsical fun menswear the young eclectic
This jacket adorned with pennies pays homage to the childhood joy of keeping collections. (Photo: Vogue.com)

Emily Bode projects her unique vision into Bode, a menswear line that started with her creating one-of-a-kind pieces from antique fabrics. Her knack for telling stories through clothing comes through in all of the darling details that make this menswear collection stand out, like the plaid suit with houses printed on it, or the clear, plastic coat showcasing somebody’s penny collection.

There were so many unexpected, little details added to each piece, it creates a sort of magic that makes this collection irresistible by creating that eclectic, thrift-chic look I’m obsessed with. All of those endearing details along with the vibrant and cozy knits paired with vintage-looking suits, and plenty of fun color sealed the deal for me. And while I’m not the intended audience for these clothes, I would gladly dress my boyfriend in them because your dream man should wear clothes that you can borrow every once and a while, and only maybe give back, am I right?

Check out a few of my favorite looks from the collection below:

All photos from Vogue.com.

Sometimes it takes losing something to realize just how much we loved it in the first place, which is what happened to me recently when I realized that Meadham Kirchhoff, a fashion brand known for their playful, whimsical, theatrical looks, no longer exists. I know what you’re thinking- If I was a true fan, then the fact that Meadham Kirchhoff is defunct would be old news (very old news) because they went out of business in 2015, but the fashion industry is so fast-paced and full of so many things happening and bombarding your attention every second of every day, that one or two brands may slip through your fingers and be lost in the swirling miasma of your memory (sorry Meadham Kirchhoff!).

All of this to say that I was very sad when I navigated to the Meadham Kirchhoff page on Vogue Runway, only to be met with the fact that their last show uploaded was from 2015. Ouch, oof, owie, my fashion bones.

meadham kirchhoff cute kawaii dramatic colorful fashion runway style girly the young eclectic spring summer 2012
One of my absolute favorite looks from Meadham Kirchoff from their Spring/Summer 2012 show- so soft in every way! (Photo: Vogue.com)

Way back in the heyday of my fashion Tumblr (remember when everyone had one of those?) Meadham Kirchhoff’s girly, fantastical, wonderfully-vibrant designs were something I never failed to reblog, wanting to immortalize their lovely clothes forever in my internet scrapbook. And it’s pretty obvious why- this brand is everything I love about fashion.

For one, Meadham Kirchhoff makes pieces that are extremely fun, including fur jackets with cherry motifs patchworked together from different colors of fur; black, Victorian-inspired coats fit for a funeral; dainty, frilly dresses that emulate the look of a cake that might have been seen in Sophia Coppola’s “Marie Antoinette;” and plenty of pastels to satisfy the whims of my girly-girl heart. Meadham Kirchhoff didn’t care about what sold, or what the fashion industry called for, they went against the grain and created looks that appealed to their own artistic sensibilities- and each of their collections came with a message, too.

Of course, one of my biggest passions is expounding on the idea that fashion is an art, and that more people should appreciate it as such, so, perhaps the thing I’ll miss most about this iconic brand is the way that Meadham Kirchhoff presented their collections. There was almost always some sort of show to drive home the central theme of the collections. One of their most iconic showings saw a clique of Courtney Love lookalikes applying lipstick and dancing across the runway, while models stepped off of a giant cake, as though they were smiling, plastic cake toppers come to life. In another, the lights were brought down low, and models tromped down the runway in their vibrant, jubilant clothes to the sound of disco music accented with swirling, colored spotlights that made you want to party. In another show that riffed off the trope of uniforms and uniformity, an army of models quickly traversed the runway that was decorated with displays that you might see at those haunting spots along roads and highways where somebody suffered a fatal car crash.

What does it all mean? Sometimes, it’s a jubilant show of youth and rebellion, of shirking the expected in the name of theatricality and art- while sometimes, it means nothing at all. That’s the fun of Meadham Kirchhoff – things that seem layered in meaning are intentionally meaningless, where the small, intricate, and unforgettable details create characters and tell stories that you’ll never forget. I only wish their brand could have survived to show us more of their joyous world.

Check out some of my favorite looks from all of their collections below:

April is already nearly a third of a way through, which means I’m having a crisis because time is moving too fast, but it also means that SPRING HAS SPRUNG. And that means the weather is, regrettably, warming up, and we all need to pull out our spring wardrobes and dust them off again.

spring is the perfect time to wear dresses because dresses can be easily layered with sweaters or jackets to stave off the chill on cooler days, but also work great on their own for warmer weather. For the past few seasons, it seems like the ~*prairie girl chic*~ style has reigned supreme as the casual dress trend of choice, led by Batsheva and her army of feminine, fresh, farmer girls in pretty, puff-sleeved creations that have inspired me to add more puff sleeves to my own wardrobe.

If you want to add some puff-sleeved whimsicality to your own spring styles, check out all of my favorite puff-sleeved dresses available for purchase now:

Frilly Femininity

Look like a lovely, vintage dolly in this frilly dress with puff sleeves, eyelet details around the collar and puff sleeves, and a flouncy, tiered skirt that will have you falling in love!

free people nanette dress puff sleeves spring 2019 prairie victorian vintage fashion style the young eclectic

Free People Nanette Dress – $325

Plaid Puffy Party

Plaid is currently a huge part of my wardrobe (keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming plaid-themed editorial!) so I was instantly attracted to this vividly-colorful, long dress with the subtlest of puffed sleeves. Paired with sneakers, it’s a great spring look!

asos neon rose maxi tea dress with puff sleeves in bold check spring 2019 prairie vintage fashion style the young eclectic

Asos Rose Maxi Tea Dress – $67

Sweet, Pink Denim

You wouldn’t think that vintage, prairie details would look good rendered in a more modern material like denim, but I think this dress manages to pull it off well, making the dress look more structured and substantial. Not to mention, denim has been a lifelong obsession of mine, so of course I couldn’t leave this one off the list!

ulla johnson wilona puff sleeve denim dress spring 2019 prarie fashion style the young eclectic

Ulla Johnson Wilona Puff Sleeve Denim Dress via Nordstrom – $375

Artsy & Architectural

It’s no secret that I love a good, crisp white shirt or dress, so this one with the simple V-neckline and ruched, balloon, puff sleeves definitely appeals to my simple fashion sensibilities. The crispness of it really gives it an architectural, art-student vibe I love!

zara poplin dress with balloon sleeves puff spring 2019 prairie style fashion the young eclectic

Zara Poplin Dress with Balloon Sleeves – $49.90

Love In Knit

This knitted masterpiece features a high neckline, charming, ruffled bib and some long, puff sleeves for a truly marvelous look that I would love to rock on a first date. Even the deep, red color is giving major romantic vibes!

reformation chapel dress puf sleeves spring 2019 cute prairie style fashion the young eclectic

Reformation Chapel Dress – $118

Vintage, Bohemian Babe

The simplicity of this linen dress with wooden buttons down the front is astounding and also very alluring. In this dress, it looks like you should be in the mountains of Austria, singing about how the hills are alive with the sound of music. Julie Andrews-level singing ability not included, unfortunately.

free people jayma midi dress puff sleeves spring 2019 prairie cute fashion style the young eclectic

Free People Jayma Midi Dress – $108

Chic Simplicity

A good, white dress is necessary to get you through the endless days of spring and summer. Not only will the light color help to keep you cool, but it’s also a fashionable choice that you can never go wrong with. It will also match pretty much any accessories you choose, so there’s no losing with this one!

zara puffy sleeved dress puff sleeves spring 2019 prairie cute fashion style the young eclectic

Zara Puffy Sleeved Dress – $69.90

Prairie Princess

This midi dress charmed the pants straight off me, with its sweet, floral print, high neck, and Victorian-style, long, poofy sleeves. This dress feels like it materialized straight from an old romance novel and I can’t get enough! The back is also open, which gives the dress a bit more sex appeal, for those of you who don’t just want to look like a character from a Laura Ingalls Wilder novel.

reformation abigale dress puff sleeves spring 2019 prarie cute style fashion the young eclectic

Reformation Abigale Dress – $218

Prim & Proper

All of the little, sheer portions of this prim, white dress give it a bit of modern flair, while the relaxed silhouette and full sleeves channel our favorite vintage, prairie style that is perfect for spring!

sea poppy pintuck puff sleeve midi dress spring 2019 vintage prairie fashion style the young eclectic

SEA Poppy Pintuck Puff Sleeve Dress via Nordstrom – $485

Tangerine Dream

This sheer, bright orange dress was so much fun for my eyes that I had to include it on the list, even though it’s almost sold out. The entire bodice is sheer, creating a ton of fun opportunities for innovative, eclectic layering (psst- keep a lookout for my upcoming editorial on creative layering!) which I’m pretty much obsessed with right now. Fun, playful layering is such a big trend for spring, a dress like this one would be perfect!

hannah kristina metz dress bando puff sleeves spring 2019 prairie cute orange style fashion the young eclectic

Hannah Kristina Metz Blythe Dress via Ban.do – $99.95

I hope you liked this quick roundup of some super cute, spring dresses you can incorporate into your warm weather wardrobes! Keep your eyes peeled for more upcoming editorials and let me know if you like these types of articles, so I can do more of them!

If you’ve been keeping up with this website for a while now, then you might have realized that I am a lover of insane amounts of color to the point of almost assaulting the eye. Why? Because it’s fun. But color isn’t always required for a collection to possess a spirit of whimsy and playfulness, things that Cecilie Bahnsen’s Fall 2019 collection has plenty of.

cecilie bahnsen fall 2019 fashion runway monochromatic whimsical style copenhagen week the young eclectic
Three things I love about this look: 1. The daintiness and poofiness of the dress. 2. The wispy, mock neck top layered underneath. 3. The seemingly-out-of-place sneakers. (Photo: Vogue.com)

Unlike most of the other collections I’ve covered on this site, Cecilie Bahnsen Fall 2019 has almost no color at all, settling for a subdued, monochromatic palette of blacks, whites, and the subtlest of yellows. But just because there is a dearth of color doesn’t mean the collection lacks imagination. In fact, it managed to capture mine with its innocent, childlike, oversized silhouettes and also charmed me with all of its girlish details like quilted fabrics, layered knits, and plenty of puffed sleeves to make you feel like a fairy tale. I liked this collection so much, I actually had trouble trying to find looks NOT to include in this article- and it was tough!

Cecilie Bahnsen, a mild-mannered and sweet woman who creates equally mild and sweet designs, wanted to add a bit of darkness to her usually-innocent looks this season and did so in ways most wouldn’t expect. While these floaty designs still retain all of the freshness and femininity Bahnsen delivers with her aesthetic, her babydoll dresses were made edgy with sharp detailing and a harsher combination of textures like crochet and ribbing. The models also marched down the runway in heavy trainers that contrasted well with the floatiness of their dress (which I now have to try in my own outfits- they just looked so freaking cool!)

One of my favorite looks from this collection was a poofy, tiered, white dress with a square neckline and a light-as-air, wispy mock neck top layered underneath. It’s those little details that really brings looks to life, and I take a lot of inspiration from them when I style my own outfits. I can definitely say with confidence that the fashion forecast for this Spring calls for a lot of puff sleeves, voluminous dresses, and innovative layering.

This is the first and only collection I have seen from Cecilie Bahnsen, and if this is her trying to add a bit of roughness to her dainty dresses, then I’m certainly excited to see what else she’s created, since I’m a fan of the girly, oversized look.

Check out some of my favorite looks from the show below:

Photos in featured image from CecilieBahnsen.com, all other photos from Vogue.com.

Marta Rios loves color, so much that she doesn’t even own any (!) black clothes, or anything that could be considered neutral because she insists that wearing color will not only make you happier, but will also improve the moods of everyone around you. In other words, Marta Rios wants us to live our lives boldly and she asserts this point with her ridiculously colorful and playfully-proportioned clothing line Atelier Mimii.

Featuring oversized, quilted dresses that come in all kinds of vibrant colors paired with all manner of ruffles and unique, art-inspired embellishments, Atelier Mimii is not for the faint of heart. In fact, these dresses are so fantastically over-the-top, that I would go as far as to classify them not as clothing, but as wearable art pieces that will transform you into a modern masterpiece to be admired. But the point of Atelier Mimii is that it is clothing and it’s meant to make our day-to-day lives much more fun and whimsical.

In fact, Marta Rios is so dedicated to making clothes that make her happy, that she never makes anything to show or accentuate the shape of the body, preferring to show off the colors and lush details, including Victorian-inspired full sleeves and collars, quilted & pearl-covered corsets that hearken back to what Spanish courtiers wore in the 16th century, and plenty of tulle. And when all is said and done, the dresses cut and sewn, Rios saves the scraps to make one-of-a-kind, handmade quilted bags to match.

I’ve been obsessed with oversized, maximalist clothing, so the Atelier Mimii aesthetic really appeals to my current style truth. My favorite look might be the yellow set with the long-sleeved shirt and shorts- so cute!

Check out some of my favorite looks from Atelier Mimii below:

Photos from NowFashion.com and Vogue.com

It seems like women that are both whimsically pretty and powerfully strong are a pervasive theme in the Fall 2019 season. Shrimps, the faux fur brand, contributed with a collection of frilly frocks inspired by Athena and her gang of pretty nymphs, who all came walking out of a huge neoclassical fresco, as though they were being conjured straight out of the mythological world before our very eyes.

The bright, printed, satin dresses with puff sleeves and fitted bodices channeled the over-the-top styles of the ’80s and conjured up visions of Athena and her leading ladies attending prom in gowns that are appropriately fantastic. And while the color palette of the collection started off as subdued neutrals, the color story developed into one that included vibrant yellows, bright orange touches, and even a checkered pattern that they added to jackets, bags, and tights. One of my personal favorite pieces was a black dress interspersed with sheer, orange, lace panels that, for some reason, made me think of a flamenco dancer.

And, of course, the coats were fab- rendered in a feathery texture and made in epic proportions, they will make anyone a fan of the statement coat. I especially adored the one that featured a playful, mythological print that Shrimps designer Hannah Weiland made herself, transforming the grey and white color scheme into something beautifully dreamy. All of this to say, I wish I lived somewhere cold enough to justify adding one of these jackets to my wardrobe, but, alas, not even Athena is powerful enough to defeat the Texas heat.

Check out some of my favorite looks from the collection below:

Cover photo from WWD.com, all other photos from Vogue.com

You already know that I’m here for any collection that even mildly scratches my fantasy itch, so when I stumbled across the Bora Aksu Fall 2019 collection via stylist Leith Clark’s instagram, I was instantly smitten. I imagined these light, dainty gowns with translucent, ruffled layers and iridescent sparkle adrift in the ocean like ethereal jellyfish, or the nightgowns of sleepy mermaids.

Things I adore about this collection: the fluid, flowing silhouettes; the pale, extra-terrestrial pinks and blues; the glittery, essence of girlhood whimsy and dreams made reality; the over-the-knee moon boots; the way it makes me imagine that there are some ultra-cool, alien girls rocking their way through the universe in Aksu’s confectionery clothes. Things I hate about this collection: that more people haven’t seen it. In other words, I’m in love.

The best thing about this collection is that, although it is playful and whimsical, with its dreamy, out-of-this world vibes (I’m so here for those silver sunglasses that resemble alien eyes), it’s also superbly wearable if you strip away the fantastical styling. A sequined blazer can be worn as a statement piece with jeans and a tee, while an aqua blue, ruffled cocktail dress would be adorable as a fun, daytime look paired with some shimmery sandals and a tiny, cross-body bag (a girl can dream!). I loved every look in this collection so much, I can’t even choose a favorite.

I can only hope that the world (and American Vogue) will pay closer attention next time Bora Aksu releases another collection to make our bleak, human days a little more alien.

Check out my favorite looks from the collection below:

All images are from BoraAksu.com