Kristen Bell once told InStyle Magazine, “When it comes to bathing suits, I have several by Lauren Moffat. J.Crew also has a good selection, with lots of different shapes, from string bikinis to boy-cut, that you can mix and match.”

A great way to get a revamp on your two-piece swimwear is to pair it with something else. Pairing bright separates can give you a great variety of looks. The Vix Leather Detail Bikini is in a gorgeous green, available from bloomingdale’s for $80.00. If you buy the Padded Solid Underwire Glamor Top in brown from J-crew for $48.00, you can easily pair it with the bottom from the green Vix Bikini.

Green and brown are a good color combo - but go with your instincts. Want a coral-colored hipster bottom and a yellow bandeau top? Go for it! Purple also looks great with yellow, which might be reason enough to pull out that purple string bikini you bought from Macy’s a few years back. It will seem suddenly all kinds of new.
Or, if you’re a Burberry lover - they have this vibrant blue String Bikini at Saks Fifth Avenue on SALE for $119.00. The piping trim gives it a bit of contrast, especially if you mix and match the top or bottom with a top and bottom from another pair. Getting the idea?

1. Solid String Top and Solid Ruched Hipster Shorts, both from J-crew. ($40.00 & $42.00)
2. Solid Twist-Front Top and Solid Hipster Tie-Bikini, both from J-crew.($40.00 & $38.00)

Another great tip from Kristen Bell? When packing for a vacation, “I always shove things inside my shoes; it’s dead space.” Pretty savvy advice. Plus, it’ll keep your shoes from getting smooshed!
Stylishly yours,

Jessica Rae

Whether you want something handy to pull on over a bikini as you run to a corner store for a flavored water, you want to protect your skin from the sun, or you have a creepy uncle that shows up at your families’ summer home - a swimsuit cover up is a great to have.

In fact, I recommend having more than one. They’re crucial on my vacation list.If Heroes‘ hottie Milo Ventimiglia happens by my poolside and asks me to eat dinner with him and his friends, I want to be prepared.

There are several choices out there, but I narrowed it down to my top six from some of TheVogueCity.com’s favorite stores. See what you think.
1. BCBG Max Azaria Embroidered Ikat Cover Up from Nordstrom ($198.00). I love how flouncy it looks, especially the sleeves.
2. Dotti Pleated Shirt Cover Up from Macy’s ($48.00). Or, get it with pleated pockets.

1. DKNY Swimwear Dot Cover Up from bloomingdale’s ($108.00). For the glamazon in every female. [details]

Say it with me: Graphic-print fashion tote bags! Whew. That’s a mouthful. Luckily, the nice part about these canvas toes is that they’re easy to wear with anything, they’re big enough to hold every essential you feel you need (including 10 fashion magazines and an emergency bag of skittles), and they are perfect for summer vacations.

I have to admit that for a long time I was always over-dressed - for almost everything. While I did receive very nice compliments of ‘you always look so put together and polished,’ these days I strive to have a little bit more fun with my style choices (going from Sex and the City’s prim Charlotte-style to Carrie’s). It’s easy for me to love the Longchamp Flower Denim Tote ($320.00) from bloomingdale’s because I’m a sucker for rose prints. I wish I could grow some real roses, but I think that’s a huge task better regulated for people with green thumbs. The closest I can come to that is a pair of green knit gloves. Luckily, the roses on this tote bag don’t need constant watering. And in the meantime, I will befriend a Prince that will send me real roses on a daily basis!
Another floral tote to love is the LeSportsac Anna Tote ($75.00) at Macy’s. I like that it’s still a little proper, but the colors are there - it’s all kinds of pretty. Take it to a garden, a beach, or a yacht if you’ve got one. (Alert! - What women over 40 want!)
Ready to make the jump? No, not off the Titantic, but into some more dangerous waters nonetheless. I’m talking about the statement-making Polly Face Canvas Tote by Jimmy Choo (SALE $682.50) from Saks. If you wear this, just make sure your own face is looking flawless - you don’t want any competition.

Here’s to living in sublime style,

Jessica Rae

As my fellow TheVogueCity.com writers Arianna, Brenae and Mirela have all agreed upon, we don’t blindly put on whatever a designer tells us we should wear. Sometimes they’re geniuses, but sometimes their out of their frickin’ minds.
The Christian Lacroix spring 2008 runway show had lots of poofy dresses that I’d never wear. Several of the models there had a look I did want to copy, though - a fuchsia lip. While they paired their’s with vibrant purple eyeshadow - that’s too much for daily wear.

Style tip: When you go bold with makeup - go bold with just one aspect.

The model’s for the (ultra ladylike and romantic) Valentino Couture spring 2008 runway show also donned fuchsia lips. The eye makeup there mostly consisted of heavy black eyeliner on the top lids that were drawn to wing out at the sides. Again, a bit much for most of us. But I can’t get over the lip color, I love it. It’s fun and really girly. And what am I if not fun and really girly? (I was going to buy a little Hell-o Kitty change purse the other day!)

So, I scoured the web for how to copy the look. You can use just a gloss, just a lip stick, or layer them.
#1.Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Reflect ($24.50) at Sephora. The color name? Fuchsia Poplin!

#2. Bourjois Effet 3D High Shine Lip Gloss ($15.50) at Sephora. The color name? Framboise Magnific!

#3. Dior Addict Lipstick ($25.00) at Saks. The Color? Optic Fuchsia!

#4. Guerlain Kiss Kiss Lipstick ($27.00) at Saks. The Color? Pink Polisson!

Psst, do you have a lip brush?

And do you want more brightness? Brenae’s got you covered.

Anyone else have a crush on Heroes star Milo ventimiglia? So yummy…

Here’s to living in sublime style,

Jessica Rae