Busy? Unbelievably. But also very confused about the weather and therefore, confused about which trends to follow and to report about. Divanity has been as out of the loop as the weather has been. Low pressure areas and heavy rains in the summer?! If this isn't global warming, then I don't know what to tell ya.
Just when the sunshine and heat was at it's peak, I was going to do a review on the limited edition creamsilk conditioner SUMMER SHINE w/ UV Blocker, down came the rain and washed the sunshine out (feel free to sing that to the tune of "Itsy Bitsy Spider"). While I do suggest you all give it a try while it's out on the market as it is fabulous, I'm not sure if any new users will get to test the best of its abilities at the beaches and other sources of major hair exposure to the sun.
On to the discovery of what I could actually share with everyone, which is both useful and delightful. Luckily, I have taken delivery of the pre-fall collections of our favorite designers, which just so happen to be the answers to our Erratic Weather Woes or EWW (total brainfart, but it works!) Take a look at some of my favorites:
Basically, what we see here is layers. The Valentino is a bit more demure and utilizes gatherings and a one-off shoulder style, while the Tuleh is still reminiscent of spring (or in our case summer) by means of prints. Now, we wouldn't use these styles in the same mechanics as those actually experiencing 4 seasons, but more of practicality for us. Both the former and the latter are perhaps alternatives to looking like a hot mess in rain gear over your clothes (though you may want to weigh out the best footwear - boots vs. sandals). The layers would allow you to make modifications in your outfit should the sun and heat return throughout the day, yet enough cover up to shield showers of rain to and from venues and your car (it's not like any of us do much walking out and about).
Where to find your versions of these ensembles? Your best bet would be to visit the European stores whose styles are inspired by top these top European designers - Mango, Terranova, Top Shop, etc. Do your own mixing and matching with your layers. Just remember to always tie down heavy prints with a solid, only wear 1 article of clothing with heavy prints at a time, and that a dominant neutral is always key.
So there you have it, my dears. While the weather and workload are hindrances in updates on the Divanity site, rest assured that we'll always be back. Many thanks to those that continue to email comments and perhaps some of you may be interested in further developing those comments into feature pieces to be published here.
Warm XX and keep living your life with Divanity!
Monique
