4th of July fun: Rock n Roll retro style

This 4th of July embrace the retro styles of the summer and design a bold look for your sizzling holiday weekend! Here is some inspiration styled by me to get you started! 

I love this star clutch by Kate Spade. It adds the perfect pop of pattern to my 60s outfit. Also I made this outfit truly vintage with this one of a kind bandana from my grandmothers closet. 

I also added this red bandana in my hair for an authentic look. I made my lips pop with my new favorite nyx red lip cream. Top it off with these Dolce and Gabana cat eye sunnies for the perfect outdoor BBQ style. 

I love how this button up jean skirt from the Gap hugs my curves. You can wear it high waisted or mid waisted making it a versatile piece in your closet. I chose high waisted with this lace up crop top from guess for an edgy patriotic look. 

Rock n Roll USA! Live it up in style this weekend wherever you are! 

CerisesduMatin for LA Elements magazine

Go check out my new article on Ellie Goulding's amazing performance during Coachella music festival in April published on LAelements.com! I'll be doing special guest Snapchat reports for LA Elements magazine so add them @laelementsmag and stay tuned! http://laelements.com/special-report-coachella-2016-weekend-two/

Fashionable Friday: Talking about the future of wearable tech with Kristine Upesleja

I got to interview Kristine Upesleja of Madison's innovative textiles and the FIDM textile science department today and I wanted to share what I learned with you! If you haven't read my article on the melange wearable tech tradeshow you can learn more about the presentation she gave there as well! Since she is an expert in this field I decided to ask Upesleja some questions about the direction of wearable tech in the future. Read on to find out all the new and exciting things coming up in fashion's newest field! Remember you heard it first here!

I’m the Textiles & Materials Manager at FIDM/ Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising.

I established the Innovative Materials Collection in the Textiles  & Materials Department in the Library. It includes garments made from coffee grounds, milk, recycled cassette tapes, or the Tommy Hilfiger solar panel coat just to name a few items in the collection. Once a year I curate an Innovative Materials Conference that travels to the other campuses in San Francisco, San Diego and Orange County. It was also shown abroad at the Academy of Art in Riga, Latvia.

Two years ago I established my own consulting  firm MADISONS – Innovative Textiles & Materials Consulting. I’m passionate about educating future designers, professionals and anybody who wants to listen about the possibilities in the textiles and design world. My website www.madisonsinnovative.com

is a source of information. You can also find me on FB and Twitter.

What do you see for the future of wearable tech? 

The ‘term’ wearable tech is diverse. As I mentioned in my presentation when we talk about wearable tech we mainly think about devices and accessories  that are connected to our phones. But it is more than that. It means to engineer  fashion which means bringing in new materials and new ways of making things. What comes to mind is tech clothing, emotional tech, the Bio lab and 3-D printing as an engineering  tool.

How would the 3D printer be integrated into that?

3-D printing is on the rise. We soon will be able to custom print our own garments including shoes

from home or right on the spot in a store. Materials are changing from plastics to natural fibers.

Korean engineers have created a system for 3-D printing ultra thin fabrics for both electrical circuits as well as wearable applications. Beyond the fashion world of wearables the medical market has adopted 3D printing in form of band aids and sensors.

What are the cities where you see this innovation happening the most?  

There isn’t a specific city I would point out. In high fashion it is the Netherlands with Iris Van Herpen on the forefront. She however collaborates with Julia Koerner, who is an architect professor at UCLA’s SUPRASTUDIO. Julia has created her own ready to wear 3-D line.

Michael Schmidt ( LA) and Francis Bitonti (NY) created the Dita van Teese dress. Bitonti is very active in the 3-D industry.

Major 3-D printing company Stratasys is located in Minnesota.

The other most important company is Materialise in Belgium

Nervous System is located in Somerville, MA.

Shapeways is Dutch founded, NY based.

Do you think the wearable tech industry is available for new ideas and innovations?

Absolutely. It seems that almost every day a new wearable tech conference is happening somewhere to bring engineers and designers together and to try to figure out how to collaborate and create something really wearable. But it’ll take time.

Right now it seems like tech companies dominate this field with google glass and apple watch etc. Do you think that will shift towards fashion in the future?

Nobody is even thinking or talking about the Google glass anymore. It’s out out out!! and never was in.

This is an example of bulky, non-efficient wearable tech in fashion.

There is still no aesthetic sensibility when it comes to wearable tech in fashion. This is the big challenge for both engineers and designers. A completely new approach and expertise is required. Designers need to explore electronics, software, bioengineering, and an entirely new retail world.

If it comes to phone related devices such as wrist tech the development is so fast that almost every few months a new generation of devices hits the market.

However what we see is that tech clothing is on the rise. It’s predicted to overtake sales of fitness trackers in 2016. ( Ralph Lauren smart shirt, Athos shirt etc.)

Coachella essentials

I'm heading out to Coachella this weekend and packing all my festival must haves! Here's a look inside my Coachella purse and a list of my favorite basics for the best desert vacay! 

Billabong tassel purse- I love this purse because it goes with almost anything and the long tassles and crochet knit makes any outfit Coachella ready! 

Kate Spade summer hat- this cute white hat is perfect for keeping the sun away and complementing any outfit at the same time! 

Dolce & Gabana sunnies- my favorite pair of retro cat eye D&G sunglasses with this floral print are the perfect statement piece for Coachella eyewear

Guess wallet- I love this brightly colored wallet because it holds all my forgotten gift cards while still being sleek and slim fitting in my purse

Victoria's Secret sunset lipgloss- this is my go to lip gloss for festival season because it has spf and a yummy flavor don't forget to protect your lips from the sun too! 

See you at the festival follow me on IG and check out my SC takeover of LAelementsmag today for all the latest from Coachella! 

Interview with Dena Burton at LAFW in Hollywood

Tonight was the second day of LAFW in Hollywood. I loved all the fun collections of the night and one of my favorites was Dena Burton a local LA designer who presented an amazing collection with faux fur designs for Fall. I went backstage to interview Dena about her collection and her inspiration. Dena is originally from Chicago and her parents traveled out to see her show. She wanted to design clothes that would empower the women on the runway and that could be wearable for all women. Her collection was definitely wearable and still high fashion. I loved the faux fur accents and coats for Fall and the neutral colors would make a great central piece to any fall wardrobe. Dana felt her show at LAFW was a success and is excited about showcasing her new collection. The clothes were well made with a great fit and I thought they had a fresh take on Fall with the lighter neutral color palette. One of my favorites was the whit dress with fur cuffs pictured below. I also liked the capes and fur wraps. They could be worn over any outfit to add a layer of warmth in the winter. Dena is all about designing clothes for women living busy lives and wants to make high fashion clothes that are powerful and fun for women to wear. Keep an eye out for this designer Dena Burton because she will definitely be around!

CdM One to watch from FWLA: exclusive interview with Gilles Bendenoun of Robin's Jeans

My favorite collection from the evening shows at FWLA Day 1 was Robins Jeans. I spoke to the marketing Director about their latest collection. The fun and stylish denim brand is designed and manufactured right here in Los Angeles. The Robins Jeans brand is all about style and the collection of denim looks included mens and womenswear. I loved the added sparkle on the jeans and their amazing jean jackets. These well designed pieces had an amazing fit and didn't look confining or stiff on the runway. I loved the Los Angeles look and mix of casual and dressy denim in this collection. According to Bendenoun Robins Jeans are made right here in downtown LA and they currently have 15 retail locations. I love discovering new boutiques and can't wait to check them out! Robins Jeans is breaking all the rules and not just with their edgy designs. When I asked about the trends from the runway collection Bendenoun explained that the designer always designs what he feels because the brand isn't subject to department store trends since they have their own stores. I could tell that the collection was full of creativity and loved the play on colors and styles. The brand is able to produce the collection and ship it to their stores easily since they are local one of the benefits of being LA made. The brand has a culture and large following around the country. Popular artist Fetty Wap is a customer of the brand and even sings about them in his song Remy Boyz 679. I would definitely wear this collection and can't wait to see more from this up and coming brand!

Exclusive Interview David Shamouelien CEO of Romeo + Juliet Couture

At the opening of LAFW Romeo and Juliet couture presented their Fall 2016 collection on the runway for the first time in the historic downtown Union Station. This was the first time the Los Angeles based brand had shown at LAFW and the crowd loved the fun and edgy collection. I interviewed David Shoumalien CEO of Romeo + Juliet before the show and got all the details on their latest collection. David has been at Romeo and Juliet for 11 years and he was excited to present the collection to FWLA attendees. Romeo and Juliet is a California lifestyle brand that brings haute couture trends from the runway to their stylish customers at an affordable price. The latest collection was inspired by 80s styles according to David. He explained that this collection focused on the richness of the designs and included luxurious details such as leather and embroidery.

The collection retained the brands romantic California style while incorporating fun pops of color into the 80s theme like this blue dress.

The designs were made from diversified materials and elegant details such as this bow from one of my favorite looks.

The collection had everything from outfits for going out to the perfect items for festival season such as this fun wrap.

I loved the lace detailing on the bottom of the skirts and how the designers played with texture in this outfit.

The clothes were fun and trendy but individual pieces could be worn on any occasion. This collection is definitely on the forefront of trends for next Fall so go check it out!