sweet smell

as an admitted perfume addict, i am currently down sizing my fragrance collection. with the cold front coming and going, michigan weather is so tempermental
i have narrowed it down to these...few...beauties:

excess

luxury!

i want luxury right now! silk, wool, fur, satin! gloss, gold, shiny!!!!
silk jumpsuits, gold babubles, opium perfume, brick red lips, a sweet Minaudiere!!!
I'm playing a lot of disco, burning incense, spraying cinnamon based fragrances and jumping in jumpsuits as of late.
divine!

pssst!

Sorry for such a delay, the store has been busy. And I do mean BUSY, lately. Quite often i am asked "Why are you here?" here being Waterford, Michigan. As opposed to say..New York or L.A. or Europe! Our store is that good. better than "that good" in fact. Being "here" is really not a choice. it's just right where we belong.
In any event, stop by, say hi...eat some chocolate try on some frocks. i promise you will have a gorgeous time.
This Friday and Saturday i'm doing a trunk show at; RED the Salon. October 22nd and 23rd. I did one a month or two ago and it was a huge amount of fun. The "RED" group is quite entertaining and very talented. Stop by! RED is: (248) 203-1313
470 N Old Woodward Ave, Birmingham, MI 48009


Als, local fashion mag: Styline, used some of our clothing in their October issue. We adore Styleline, possibly the best fashion rag in Michigan.
Heres some snaps, shot by Dan Lippitt. J'adore!

marjan malakpour

marjan....stylist.
love this video.
~~enjoy~~

Isabel Toledo

“I’m [designing] shoes that you want to see women wear on a day-to-day basis,” said Toledo. “You’ll see a very clean, graphic design, very utilitarian. I’m really interested in making shoes that women can walk in. Even for the evening shoes, I’m trying to address comfort and high style at a great price.”
ISABEL TOLEDO TALKING ABOUT HER SHOE COLLECTION FOR PAYLESS

....and before I start chatting up about Ms. Toledo, may I say that I thoroughly enjoyed all the wonderful dames who have worked with me this past year. My awesome intern Courtney, who took over the blog for awhile, Gracie....lovely little organizer and Zoe who ended up being a model for our ad's and site.
I miss you all, can someone find my keys???????


The Toledo's have been a super obsession of mine for many years. In fact if you have shopped my site or stopped by my store you will notice that I have a Ruben Toledo mannequin for Ralph Pucci. She has a few nicks but is just divine. A treasure worth her weight in gold!




(here she is ...shot by photographer: Irakly Shanidze, ummm you should know him, model's hair by Anita Schwartz at RED the SALON, (you will know her!) and make up by Wendy Whitelaw (google her!)

anyway, i totally jumped on the Payless bandwagon and purchased these little lovelies!

am thinking about these tooo....


I love her clothing collection for Couture Lab...and Ruben's drawings (for Nordstrom's, on isobel etc. etc.) are wild!

Chloé, keeping me crazed

Chloé, for what we all know and love of the beautiful luxury ready to wear, has kept me dreaming and lurking in her magazine ads for quite some time now. I cannot determine whether it’s the way the clothes are tailored just right giving an amazing girly but oh so sophisticated feel using all the right colors and textures draped in the most dreamy way, or whether it’s the models that get it right every time by their delicate horseback riding character and never appearing to try too hard, but always just happens to be.

Whatever it may be for myself or for you…Chloé has maintained her place in the fashion spotlight since the early fifties. Chloé has had multiple ( and magnificent at that!) designers through the years: Karl Lagerfeld for over a decade, Martine Sitbon, Stella McCartney before launching her own line, McCartneys assistant- Phoebe Philo, Yvan Mispelaere, and NOW.. Hannah MacGibbon! Although it seemed that MacGibbon appeared out of the blue to many, she worked at Valentino for sometime before jumping to Chloé’s team. She was behind scenes at Chloé for five years making her way to designer presenting her 2009 Resort Collection as her first!

And so it is that Hannah has added her spice to the latest collections and for many has caused a wee bit of anxiety for their rankings of the new designer. For what many associate with Chloé, such as all the frills and prints—out the window! And the statement shoes and pronounced bags with much hardware— away with those too! A more tailored fitting, less girly and much more masculine vibe has moved in. I notice a lot of practicality in the latest collections ; from the blouses and dresses all the way down to the shoe. The basic color palettes give a clean and simple look to the eye—but tremendous for layering! And if you ask me, I just cannot marvel over her efforts enough!


1970's Chloé Ad




Karl Legerfeld, head designer of Chloé at time, shows 70's designs


Hannah MacGibbon presents her 2010 RTW collection





Written by: Courtney Yanick

TENT SALE

at our store!
from Glamorous Moms
On Saturday, July 17th, from 10am to 5pm, Chi Chi and the Greek is hosting a marvelous tent sale with up to 50% off on selected items! Chi Chi and the Greek specializes in women’s vintage clothing and accessories and over 100 new items have been added to the store for this sale. On a normal day, Chi Chi and the Greek have some pretty fantastic prices and to have mark downs up to 50% off, you’d be silly not to check this sale out!

Both affordable and venerable, Chi Chi and the Greek is a boutique that can make your closet flawless with just a few classic vintage pieces. So bring out your inner glamour and shop at the best vintage store in town, this Saturday! Each customer who makes a purchase will receive a mini Chanel No 5 fragrance travel set. Now that’s glamorous.

Chi Chi and the Greek is located 3543 Elizabeth lake Rd. Waterford Mi. 48328. Phone – 248-255-5039

Photo by Irene Mahmud

The New "it" Bags

I'm a sucker for a good bag. lately what i ahve been seeing around town has left me a bit "eh" Our newest acquisitions have, quite frankly, sent me over the moon.
Kelly Bag shapes,Carlos Falchi clutches, vintage skins, Andrew Geller bags, lush tapestries and needlepoints....perfection!
While all these bags are from the 1950's and on, each and everyone is in excellent condition.
Enjoy!
CHI CHI AND THE GREEK

Chop Chop featured on my.gloss !!

Delighted to say, our dear friend Sophia from Chop Chop Beauty Shop was featured on mygloss.com.

Sophia shares with us her wonderful insight on how to easily refresh your style—mixing it up with hair color! And which I must say, is perfectly brilliant. Not only easy and quick, but can add that little bit of spice to your look without riding your closet. Sophia lets us in on her secrets, like the big winner: you don’t need to give your whole head a bath of dye, but rather throw in some random highlights, such as placing them in the back and when your hair is up it speaks ‘divine’! She insists colors of red, chocolate brown, raspberry! Try it, won’t you??


Sophia's work has been published in local and national magazines. She has also worked in film.

Chaos 2010-Vintage issue.
photo: Christian O'Grady
Hair and make up: Sophia Contoguris
Styling: Kelly Johnson
Clothes; Chi-Chi and the Greek


photo; Josh Band
hair make up: Sophia Contoguris
styling: Kelly Johnson (chi-chi and the greek)


private commision
photo: Irakly Shanidze
hair-make up: Sophia Contoguris
clothing/styling: Kelly Johnson (chi-chi and the greek)


More of Sophia and Chop Chop here:
http://www.sophiacontoguris.com/


Written By: Courtney Yanick

JT Leroy

Author of “Sarah” and “The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things”, JT Leroy has established quite a name for himself…or should I say many. Jeremiah “Terminator” Leroy is considered as one of the most intelligent and creative crackerjacks in performing a scandalous hoax, in my book.

And so the story goes: Leroy was a drug addicted teenager who prostituted himself at truck stops before his years of writing. Then fleeing to San Francisco, Leroy turned his stories into work making him a successful writer. But what is most unusual is Leroy had started working with his agents and editors about 5 years before the publication of “Sarah” in 2001 and nobody had ever met Leroy in person. All interviews and discussions were through telephone, email, or fax. Leroy was suspiciously avoiding all means of contact...And it wasn’t until after his publication of “Sarah” that Leroy started making public appearances; distinguished by a bright blonde wig and killer sunglasses. Immediately people started drawing suspicions of Leroy and if that was really him behind the glasses. Not a single record of a JT Leroy or existing family member could be found, not a single road where he supposedly spent his childhood, or a townsman familiar with his name. And when he was questioned, he used his corrupted childhood as an explanation behind the cross-dressing and blonde wigs, as well as his delicate voice on the phone. Every possible twist leading to Leroy was not found... Although it wasn’t until 2005 that the real Jeremiah “Terminator” Leroy was discovered!

In an interview, Geoffrey Knoop admitted that the person behind JT Leroy was Laura Albert. Geoffrey Knoop and Laura Albert were the supposed parents that rescued Leroy as a corrupted teenager. The real deal was Knoop and Albert were not only lovers but the brains behind this all clever hoax. Knoops half sister, Savannah Knoop, was the face of all public appearances as Leroy! And it wasn’t until the couple split that Geoffrey Knoop let the cat out of the bag and Laura Albert was of course charged with fraud. But what it most amazing is not only she twisted everyone’s minds at a flawless level, but she managed to do it for a whopping 10 years! Best believe it!

After the JT Leroy hoax fell apart, years later a fragrance called ‘Trompeur’ by perfumer Yosh Han came about. Before JT Leroy was uncovered, he had contacted Yosh to pair up and create a fragrance of earthy, yet sexual scents to go along with his new book, “The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things”, as that would be the new fragrance name. Only months later, the scandal was released and lawsuits started storming. Yosh quickly dropped her support from the new fragrance. So then the perfume ‘Trompeur’ hit markets not long after. And you ask what does Trompeur mean exactly? French for betrayer, misleading, deceiver (I think it suits just right!) Yosh had revamped the Leroy created perfume under her own brand after some feelings of betrayal. Of course Yosh wont admittingly tell that this fragrance portraits Leroy, but only her biggest fans could put one and one together.

Written By: Courtney Yanick