Raleigh Denim

Raleigh Denim was created by husband and wife, Victor and Sarah Lytvinenko, of Raleigh, NC. They have created a small team of hard workers who do it all, from start to finish, under 1 roof! And this fabulous brand also uses locally produced materials to create all their handmade jeans.

The Raleigh Denim now has their homemade jeans available at Barney's in the New York and Los Angeles stores. Which is completely awesome. And for us locals, they can also be found atStitch, Holly Aiken's shop and studio in downtown Raleigh (corner of Wilmington and Hargett streets).

This is an amazing and inspiring story. Something fun to watch out for when you get your pair... "we've signed the inside pocket and hand stamped the # of your pair on the leather patch." eee!

ASH SURRY JEANS $285

UNION JEANS $275

STROKES TROUSER $260

Vampy Is So In

Vampires are popping up everywhere you look! Starting with Twlight, and now to the Vampire tv shows, fashion has gone vampy. The look is in, and these designers have definitely made it work!

Fendi 2009 Ad Campaigns:

Hussein Chalayan FW09 collection:

Gossip Girl Fashion

Gossip Girl and fashion go together like mac and cheese! I love Gossip Girl and think it is a great show to watch for the latest fashions. This season, Gossip Girl will have stylish cameo appearances by Tory Burch and Gorgina Chapman. The 2 designers will be appearing on the Oct. 5th episode...I know I will be watching!

xoxo messy lulu

Recipe of the Week: CRAB CAKES

I had never made crab cakes before because...frying things scares me. I dedicate this recipe to my brother b/c he loves them and since you can bake these, I'm not afraid to make them anymore! Yey!

ps- The Lemon Parsley Slaw is a must!

ps again- The recipe I used says these are low calorie, low carb and low fat (YEYYY!)

Crabcakes and Lemon Parsley Slaw

Prep:15 mins Cook:20 mins

1 lb crabmeat (fresh or canned)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs

2 TBSP. low fat mayonnaise

1 egg

1 TBSP. chives

1 TBSP. dijon mustard

1 teasp. seasoning

cooking spray

lemon wedges

Lemon Parsley Slaw

1. Preheat oven to 450*. Place pan in oven for 10 mins to heat.
2. Drain crab meat.
3. Combine 1/4 breadcrumbs, mayo, and next 4 ingred. Gently add crab neat to mixture using hands to toss. Shape unto 6 patties. Dredge patties in remaining 1/4 c breadcrumbs.
4. Coat crab cakes with cooking spray. Remove hot pan from oven, coat pan with cooking spray.
5. Place crab cakes on hit pan. Bake 450 for 10 mins; turn cakes over and bake 10 more mins. Or until lightly browned. Serve with lemon wedges and lemon slaw.

Per crab cakes and 3/4c slaw: cals 187; fat 8.4g; protein 18.9g; carb 9.2g; fiber 1.9g; chol 137mg; iron 1.5mg; sodium 1037mg

Lemon Parsley Slaw

Prep:4 mins

2 teasp. grated lemon rind

1 teasp. fresh lemon juice

1/2 teasp. dijon mustard

1/2 teasp. salt

2 TBSP. extra-virgin olive oil

6 cups thinly sliced cabbage

lots of parsley

1. Whisk together first 4 ingrde in a large bowl: gradually whisk in olive oil.

2. Add slaw and parsley, tossing gently.

Per 3/4 cup slaw: calories 63; fat 4.8g; protein 1g; carb 4.2g; fiber 1.7g; chol 0mg; iron .6 mg; sodium 218mg

Charlotte North Carolina Fashion Week!

Charlotte, NC will be holding the 2nd annual Charlotte North Carolina Fashion Week (CNCFW) September 10-12. It will be a weekend full of fashion, from new designers to boutique stores around the area, held in the Mint Museum of Art.

I was given the chance to get involved with this event and am very excited about it! I think this type of event will help expose fashion that we have right here, in North Carolina. It is also a chance for local fashion designers to show off their work without having to live in New York or LA.

If you are interested in getting tickets for the show or for more information go to www.charlottencfashionweek.com

The Ugly Truth

My movie review for The Ugly Truth, actually has a lot more to do with the wardrobe, than the movie. Haha, shocker!

Ok so I went to see The Ugly Truth the other night with my bff B. We actually both decided we liked the movie way more than we thought we would.

Katherine Heigl plays a morning show producer. And besides going through 80% of the movie with terrible hair, she actually always has a great outfit on. Most of the scenes when she is at work, she was wearing something that I would want to wear.

In the scene above (the picture kind of sucks, but it is the only one I could find, ps- see what i mean about her hair- ugh!) she has a supercute double belt, around a grey vest.

So it really stuck out to me when her male co-worker makes fun of her work clothes by saying, "you’re all about comfort and efficiency!"

It seems a bit harsh to be judging her work attire like that. I think the wardrobe department nailed a great, fashionable work look. If you have seen the movie, let me know what you think about it!

Kate Spade's Not Just A Purse!

Kate Spade has become famous for her cute and preppy purses! She has also been known for accessories, shoes, her own line of stationary, and plates too. But now Kate Spade is bringing us even more! Clothing and jewelry! Kate simply states, "it's clothing as accessories - easy but never basic. things that don't require a fitting room! things you throw on and it's not, ooh, does it fit? but, oh my god, i have to have this!" I like her thinking!

Kate Spade in Charlotte launched the line Aug 11th

Raleigh's Cameron Village's Beanie + Cecil (and the Wilmington location) will be carrying the line this Friday, Aug 28th

Katie Holmes Has A Clothing Line

According to WWD, Katie Holmes and her stylist, Jeanne Yang are teaming up to create a high-end line, to be sold at Maxfield in LA, this fall. The line, called Holmes and Yang, will be targeted for women and children.

Yang designed Katie's dress for the Tropical Thunder premiere last year. Hmmm...What do you all think?

I Heart Chuck Bass

Here is a picture of Chuck and Blair, characters from my favorite show Gossip Girl. The very vampire-y picture will be in an upcoming issue of Elle Magazine. I love Chuck and I love Leighton Meester's dress too!

Recipe of the Week: BLACK LENTIL AND COUSCOUS SALAD

I found this awesome recipe from Cooking Light. It is a light, meat free kind of meal. Actually this is the first time I have ever eaten black lentils. YUM! This dish was easy to make and I will definitely be making it again! I liked it because I felt healthy eating it and most veggie dished I make have tons of cheese in it. This one didn't! Ps-I left out the raisins b/c i don't like them.

I'm also sending this to my bff blogger friend at http://carving-tree.blogspot.com/ Check out her site- it is awesome!

1/2 cup dried black lentils

5 cups water, divided

3/4 cup uncooked couscous

3/4 teaspoon salt, divided

1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/3 cup raisins

1/3 cup finely chopped red onion

1/3 cup finely chopped cucumber

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

3 TBSP chopped fresh mint

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

3 TBSP fresh lemon juice

2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

1. Rinse lentils with cold water; drain. Place lentils and 4 cups of water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 mins. or until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water; drain.

2. Bring remaining 1 cup water to a boil in a med saucepan; gradually stir in couscous and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Remove from Heat; cover and let stand 5 mins. Fluff with fork. Combine lentils, couscous, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, tomatoes, and remaining ingredients in a large bowl.

Yield: 6 servings (1 cup each)

calories 175; fat 4.8g, protein 4.5g; carb 28.8g, fiber 2.8g, chol 0mg; iron 1mg; sodium 322mg,

This recipe can also be found online at: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1842312

Slaying the Dragon

The Joy of Cooking is one of the most famous cookbooks in America. As fun as cooking can be, sometimes it is a daunting task...especially when you get home from work at 7, and still have to run to the grocery store!

This is the cover of the edition in 1931. Haha- it is an illustration of a woman 'slaying the dragon of kitchen drudgery'! How perfect and fabulous! I love it! It has inspired me to do a recipe of the week... Bon Appetit!

Grey is the new Black

At least as far as nailpolish goes. I have been searching since Christmas 08(!) for a fabulous grey nailpolish. I am happy to report I finally found it! Sally Hansen's Gunmetal 22! It is the perfect color I had been looking for, not too shiney, and it's under $6! I found it at Harris Teeter (my local grocery store) but I am sure you would be able to find it at any CVS or Walgreens. Yes, it is fabulous!

Rachel Roy, Where Are You?

Rachel Roy has created the Rachel Rachel Roy collection to hit macy's stores this fall. This line includes everything: apparel, footwear, handbags and jewelry. The affordable line will retail from $59-$250.

I went to Macy's today very excited to see the colletion, only to find out that no one had any idea what, or who, I was talking about :( ...so maybe I jumped the gun and was a little too early?!

Everything looks so cute! Macy's I will be back in September for the faux fur vest...and the gold mini skirt...and the black mini dress...and the necklaces...hee!

Stella McCartney Reminds Us Fashion is Fun!

Stella McCartney's fall 09 ads are fabulous! They remind us that fashion shouldn't be taken so seriously! I really like these ads, they make me happy. Can you image how boring these pictures would be if she hadn't added the Disney characters! The pictures, from WWD, were taken by photographer Ryan McGinley.

Date Night!

I gots a date tonight! YAY!

I just got these shooties (a Rachel Zoe-ism for shoes + booties) from Target, and would love to wear them tonight! Now I just need to figure out the rest of my outfit!

NC Museum of Art

I went to the North Carolina Museum of Art last week. Check it out www.ncartmuseum.org. My bff B and I had a great time! There were so many things to look at and it was FREE to get in! We spent a couple of hours there and here were some of the things we liked...

The picture above is of a plane made out of hanging butterflys and flowers. Each flower and butterfly is suspended from their own steel cable. It was amazing and so colorful. This was my favorite. It was way cooler to see in real life!

This lady was watching us the whole time we were there. I think she was listening to our conversation! haha!

Angry Crocodile! This would be so cool to have in my house! I love him and want him to be my pet. So angry and so cute too!

I also saw this great old painting from the 1400 of a king. He looked like a little boy king, but he had the most beautiful shoes I have ever seen (at least in a painting anyways). I am still looking for the painting, and will post it when i find it!

So if you are looking for a fun cheap thing to do this summer- go to your local art museum. You may have a better time than you think!