Cover Your Tracks

“Now arriving on Track 1, Section B is the scheduled 6:27 express to…”  I hear that announcement whenever I’m standing behind a sista with exposed weave tracks. Casual Friday followers know that I’m anti-weave so today’s post should not be a shocker.

Sistas!  If you choose the weave PLEASE check your entire head before leaving the house.  Right after you apply the Pretty Girl cosmetics and run your tongue over your teeth to remove lipstick smudges, grab a hand mirror, hold it to the back of your head, and turn your back to the door of the medicine chest.  Shine a really bright light on to your head and fix the problem areas. I shouldn't see where your hair and weave meet.  And, please make sure that I can’t see your natural naps ‘cause believe me, if the two hair textures are not a good match, there’s just no way that’s gonna look anything but mangy and nasty. 

The mess on your head is distracting.  I can't help but stare at you--for the wrong reasons.  And yes, your "oh, no she didn't" weave will become dinner conversation.

The "It" Bag

Pretty psychedelic, huh?  This grandma-on-acid vintage bag is not the latest Prada, Dooney & Bourke, or Louis Vuitton. This bag has no pedigree, but it has plenty of attitude. The outside feels like an old school chenille bedspread; the inside is lined with a heavy navy blue taffetta that is remarkably still intact.

I nabbed this at The Wardrobe Boutique.  This is my "It" bag for fall.  Love it!!

Loafing Around

Remember back to school time?  If you weren’t outfitted with a pair of brand new saddle shoes with eraser colored soles you probably had a pair of penny loafers.  Didja have a shiny copper penny (or for the big spenders, a nickel) inserted into the coin slot? Yeah, me too. Well, now you can relive those days with this season’s hottest shoe, the chunky heeled loafer.

A perennial preppy favorite, you can find these kicks at any price point.  Makers include Nine West, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Burberry, True Religion, Chinese Laundry, Gabrielle Rocha, and Boutique 9.

Wear them with to work a suit for extra attitude, and pair them with your favorite jeans on the weekends.  You may not be able to jump double dutch in them, but you’ll double your cool fashionista points.

Carmen Jones

Harry and Dorothy

Back in the day, movies about regular folk had style and elements of glamour.  The stylish 1954 Otto Preminger film Carmen Jones inspired me with an all-black cast led by the fabulously talented and gorgeous Dorothy Dandridge and the still smokin’ Harry Belafonte.

Carmen Jones is a sexy, tragic love story where the lead character seduces, abuses, and subsequently drives a naïve young army pilot mad. Years earlier, Oscar Hammerstein, Jr. had taken Georges Bizet’s Carmen, switched the story's focus from 19th century Spaniards to World War II blacks, and the locale to a Southern military base.

As Carmen Jones, Ms. Dandridge is as sultry as a mid-August day. She struts, flaunting and taunting, heating up the screen while she flirts shamelessly with her prey and her film audience.  Ms. Dandridge is rarely mentioned as a style icon; other black stars such as Diana Ross or Lena Horne are usually cited.  But, as this film shows, she absolutely had the stuff.

Check out this 2009 post from the "Gettogethablog," and read more about this slice of black Hollywood glamour. And if you haven't seen Carmen Jones, what are you waiting for? Add it to your Netflix queue!